New Super Mario Bros X
by JellyUltraz
Summary: Princess Peach is having a peaceful walk with Mario, but everything goes wrong, and Peach is kidnapped! And when several heroes from entirely different worlds get into the mix and intervene, Mario finds he actually has some comrades to save the princess with this time around!
1. Another Kidnapping

**It's my second story. It's a crossover. It was inspired by the PMX series (which is definitely one of the best stories in the fandom) by ChildAtHeartForever, which was where I got the idea to slap X on the end of the story name, too. Now, what else is there to say? No, really, someone answer that question. I don't actually know... ._.**

* * *

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 1: Another Kidnapping…

"OK, team, where next? We've gone to our worlds, and a ton of n"

"Hmm…what about where that famous hero Mario lives?"

"That's actually a pretty good idea! We haven't been there for a LONG time. Good job!"

"I have my moments…"

"OK people. We're heading to Mario's world, got it?"

"Who made you the leader?"

"And we're missing someone…"

"Let's not think about that. Besides, they're the one who didn't show up on time."

"I'm BORED. Can we just go now? I wanna eat some of mushrooms again! And those stars that taste like candy!"

One of the people present made a face…and spun rapidly, sticking out a sword and slowly rising into the air. Once they were high enough…they stopped spinning, and did a Jump Attack to the ground, disappearing on impact in a green flash.

The next to leave shrugged, and starting running in a circle, creating a blue whirlwind. Then they started spinning a ball, and flung themselves into the middle of the whirlwind. Once they were high enough, they spun out of his ball form and snapped their fingers, making the whirlwind disperse into a cobalt blue flash. They were gone.

The final one there sat for a moment, and threw their mallet in the air. They then threw their cutter into the air. The two weapons spun in the same position, one behind, one in front. Eventually, the spinning caused a portal to appear. A star then soared into view, and they jumped on, riding it into the portal.

. . .

It was a lovely day in the Mushroom Kingdom, and Mario was taking a stroll with Princess Peach.

"Go...Lakitu!" a voice called out near Princess Peach's Castle.

"I told you, it's Lakithunder! I want to be called LAKITHUNDER!" another voice near the first yelled back.

"You'll only get called that if you can use these prototype lightning bolts the way we want you to."

"Hmph!"

Suddenly, Peach's castle in the distance was suddenly struck by lightening bolts, startling the two and causing the Toads near the castle to panic and run around in circles. Mario decided to check it out, and left Peach near the bush they stopped at. Bowser Jr slowly crept up to Princess Peach, and when he was close enough…he snatched her! Peach let out a cry, and Mario instantly ran after her captor. Just then, three strangers appeared out of the sky, and landed in the middle of the scene, one of them dropping their sword. After a quick scuffle, Mario still chased after Bowser Jr. Bowser Jr jumped over the pile, and threw a Green Shell at the trio and Mario who was just running past them. Bowser Jr then continued to flee after collecting several items two of the people apparently dropped.

This sent all four of them flying into the air. While in the air, they finally spoke.

"Who are you?" Mario asked.

"I'm Sonic the Hedgehog, fastest thing alive!"

"I'm Link, the Hero of Time!"

"And I'm Kirby."

"You know, compared to our intros, yours seems…underwhelming…yet so flat out simple."

"I take offence to most of that!"

"Either way, nice to meet ya Mario."

"You know me?" the plumber pointed at himself to confirm.

"You're famous across the worlds, how wouldn't we know you?"

Before Mario could answer, just then, Luigi was walking past where Mario and the other heroes used to be casually, until the four heroes landed on him, and the shell from earlier rebounded off a block and soon hit the pile of heroes, sending all of them (except Mario, who got up quickly and hopped over the shell) flying in the air in different directions, landing who knows where.

Mario got up, looked around, and figured it would be best to chase after Bowser Jr, and did just that.

. . .

**1-1**

Mario was running at a fast pace, to see a Goomba near a few blocks, which he jumped on. He bashed the three blocks, two containing a coin, and one having a Mushroom, which Mario ate as soon as he got it, turning into Super Mario once again. He collected the coins in his path as he jumped up two ledges, and hit another block for a coin. He jumped on a group of three brick blocks, and hit a brick block which was above of the middle block of the three, and got several coins. Then he proceeded to hit the blocks he was just standing on, getting a coin from one, and breaking the others.

He continued forward, jumping off a Goomba on to a pipe. He watched a Goomba fall into a hole, and jumped over said hole. He stopped near a lone block, hit it, and a GIANT Mushroom grew out of the block. Mario jumped, touched it and grew to epic proportions.

"Oh yeah!"

Mario trampled through everything in sight, jumping over the second pipe. As soon as he smashed through the first pipe, he saw a Star Coin quite high up near some blocks. He kept running, and caught it without any effort since he was much bigger right now. He reached a little hole with a Star Coin stuck in it, blocked out by some brick blocks. Mega Mario ground pounded the blocks, and easily broke through, claiming another Star Coin.

Mario suddenly felt like he missed something as his Mega wore off and he was reverted back to Super Mario. He shuddered, and backtracked back to the second pipe. He decided to check this one, and he managed to get down it. He landed underground, and defeated a Goomba. Mario then hit all 5 of the blocks that were nearby. He gained 5 coins from doing so, and jumped over a hole that would most likely lead to him losing a life. He saw a couple of Goombas near 5 more blocks, and stomped 'em. He then hit all 5 of the blocks again, gaining two coins and a Fire Flower. He saw a Star Coin in the corner above the pipe, and jumped up, snatching it. Mario now had all 3 Star Coins in this particular area, knowing they would lead to a reward sooner or later.

He came out of the underground section through another pipe. After blasting the Koopa Troopas nearby, Mario jumped over a hole, and decided to check if there was a secret block in between two blocks, one of which a Koopa was standing on. There was no secret block, and Mario lost his power-up. He hit the block the Koopa was on, sending him into his shell, and climbed a block staircase to the right. At the top, he saw the black Flagpole, and made a daring leap, getting 2000 Points. He slid down it, jumped off and continued onwards.

**1-2**

Mario ground-pounded into a hole he fell in, and when he hit the middle block of three at the bottom, he fell through it, collecting some coins. He saw a red winged block, and bashed it, receiving a Fire Flower. He hit a lone blue block, and claimed another Fire Flower, and put it in storage.

There were some blocks below his feet, and Mario decided to see what was at the bottom, and ground-pounded through the coins and blocks, landing on something.

"OW! Why'd you do that?" Link cried as he shook Mario off of him. "Please…lay off the pasta."

Mario gave Link a dark glare, and explained to him why he was here and what happened earlier.

"Ah, so you're trying to rescue Peach again, eh?" Link said. "Yeah, sure, I can help you I guess. It would help kill time too. But I kind of lost my sword when I was sent flying."

Link dusted himself off, and joined Mario. The duo collected a huge batch of coins, and climbed out of the hole via springs and ledges.

Link saw a Star Coin in a corner only accessible by jumping across some blocks. Link instantly jumped onto the first square of blocks, then on to the next and lunged at the Star Coin, nabbing it and jumping down stylishly. Mario just gave him a look, and they continued on.

Link rummaged through himself, looking for a temporary weapon, until he pulled out a Boomerang. He tossed it at the Goombas, making them dizzy, then coming back to finish them off before Mario could connect his foot to them.

"This'll do. Boomerangs are deadly too!" Link explained.

"You think I don't know that?" Mario asked.

"Maybe."

Link saw another Koopa approached them, and tossed his boomerang at it. The boomerang sliced through the Koopa, knocking him in back into his shell, and when the boomerang came back, it knocked the shell at the duo. They both sweat-dropped.

"Oops! Mario, we should probably run." Link instantly suggested as he caught his boomerang.

Mario nodded and they ran away on to a ledge. The shell bounced off of it, and went back where it came from. Mario ran ahead and hit a block, which revealed a Fire Flower. Mario offered it to Link.

"Eh, sure. I'll have more firepower!"

Mario just face-palmed as Link's weapons suddenly upgraded. Link proceeded to throw his Blazing Boomerang at the Goombas. It roasted them, and defeated them.

"Ha! You just got burned!" Link chuckled as Mario wondered if he was always like this as he broke many blocks.

There was a Koopa Troopa, who was hit by a flaming boomerang, and was set on fire. It ran away screaming. There was a path ahead…but it was small enough for neither Link nor Mario to be able to get through normally. Link kicked a Goomba who approached them rolling into a hole far ahead. Link smirked as he crawled under the hole. Mario started running, and rolled under it. Then Mario ran up, jumped just before the hole the Goomba fell into, and hit a block that was directly above the hole, making a Fire Flower pop out and Mario landed safely on a little ledge.

"How the heck did you know that was there?" Link asked, eyes slightly bulging in shock.

"Instinct."

Link shrugged as he tossed his Blazing Boomerang at a Koopa past the hole and above Mario (he ducked) and hit the Koopa in the eyes.

"MY EYES! MY EYES!"

Mario: O.O

Link sweat-dropped as the Koopa smashed through some blocks trapping a Star Coin in pain, and fell off the edge to the right.

There was silence as Link ran ahead and collected the Star Coin which was now open to them (though the way to get it was to ground pound through the top part of it to land on the coin).

There was a see-saw above a large pit (the same one that the Koopa fell into). Mario jumped on it, tipping it to the right, forcing Mario to make a mad dash to the other side, defeating a Goomba as he landed on some high blocks. Link jumped on to it, but it was still focused on the left side, so Link nearly fell in. He scrambled to the right side, and it slowly rebalanced itself. Link sighed as he jumped and landed next to Mario. He then collapsed from the amount of effort he put into getting to the other side.

Mario picked him up, walked to some pipes, burnt some Piranha Plants plus a lone Goomba, and dropped him off below a block containing a Fire Flower. Link woke up, and nabbed the Fire Flower.

"Thanks for the save." Link said as he put the Fire Flower away.

Mario gave a thumbs-up and they searched the pipes for any secrets. The first one was enterable, and they dropped in.

They landed in a room with a ton of blocks, and a passage under the blocks the exit pipe was resting on. There was also a Red Koopa on three horizontally connected blocks. Mario hit a block the Koopa was standing on, making him hide in his shell, and kicked him into the low blocks. Mario took refuge on the only two blocks he could reach quickly. Link however attempted to cling to a wall to not get hit, which somehow worked for a while, but the shell was only halfway through the blocks, and Link still couldn't find safety. He saw Mario and dived at him just before the shell hit him. Mario was pushed into the pipe, and Link was safe. The shell wasn't there anymore, so Link checked the very low hole. It was clear, and he couldn't see any shell. He crawled under it, and reached a new room full of Goombas stuck in two somewhat U-shaped block patterns, one bigger than the other. Link ran to the far right, saw a block and hit it for a Mega Mushroom. He grew to epic proportions just like Mario (though he lost his "firepower") and destroyed everything. Once he was done wrecking stuff, Link left through a pipe, and saw an annoyed Mario waiting for him.

Link sweat-dropped and Mario shook off his grudge. They reached another large pit with pipes as platforms. Mario jumped in the air, flipped and landed on a Koopa Troopa, picked up the shell, jumped on the furthest pipe from a pair of blocks, and kicked it towards the right. As it fell into the pit, the shell hit a block containing a Fire Flower. Mario let Link take it since he didn't need it. After the duo burnt some enemies, they crossed another see-saw much easier than last time, and Link felt his treasure instinct tingle.

"There's something there, over that ledge all the way up there. Should we split up?" Link asked as he pointed to the ceiling/ledge above them. Mario nodded, and he leaped back on to the see-saw, tilted it so the right side was higher, and ran up it. He jumped near the end of the right side, and climbed up the ledge.

Link jumped over a small pit, and went into the pipe past it. He came up aboveground, and climbed up a block staircase. He lunged at the black Flagpole, and got 2000 Points.

. . .

Mario ran till he fell off the ledge, and went headfirst into a Star Coin. It was the third one. He jumped up to a higher ledge, noticing a pipe. He went into it, and came out aboveground. He jumped on to a group of blocks, and leaped for a red Flagpole. He got 4000 Points this time.

Mario continued on an entirely different path to Link, and saw a red Toad House. He decided to save that for later, when he needed it and ran back to the underground area and Link…

. . .

Link journeyed on his own, heading to the Fortress which was in sight. He saw the next area, and trudged on.

. . .

Mario was at the Fortress. Either he headed back to intercept and rejoin with Link, or he tackled this towering building...


	2. Trouble in the Tower

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 2: Trouble in the Tower

**1-3**

"There was probably a secret there…and Mario must have taken it, which is why he hasn't come back yet. I wonder where he is now. He's probably ahead of me because that secret was most likely a shortcut." Link wondered. "Ah, well, I may as well try to catch up."

Link continued into the next area, but was stopped by a large pit which he couldn't jump over, and there was nothing to help him get across. He noticed a block in the middle of the fields, and hit the block which sprouted a vine. Link knew he would have to climb into the sky to get across the pit. So he jumped on to the vine, and climbed up. Before he knew it, he hit the block at the top and jumped off, landing on some large Mushrooms which acted as safe platforms for Link to stand on. He still had his "Firepower" but still didn't have his sword…or any of his other items. Only his Blazing Boomerang remained.

He gripped it tightly, and jumped up to a higher red mushroom. He jumped on to a thicker red mushroom which was tilting back and forth behind a green mushroom. Link stood up, and tried to keep his balance. From there, he leaped on to the same kind of mushroom a distance away, which was behind a long red mushroom. Link bashed the block above it, and a Fire Flower popped out. Link didn't bring his Item Pouch, so he couldn't store more than 1 item.

He slid down the tilting mushroom, then ran and jumped to a shorter green mushroom. Goombas were all over him when he landed before he even got to throw his boomerang. He lost his firepower, and he back-flipped away from the Goomba pile on to the long red mushroom from earlier. He tossed his normal Boomerang at the Goombas, and it stunned them. It came back, and knocked all the Goombas off the mushrooms.

"What does this spinning propeller do?" Link asked, jumping back to the green mushroom and staring at a weird floating fan.

He jumped on it, and he started spinning.

"Ah! My head is spinning!" Link cried. "I'm feeling sick…I gotta get off!"

Link sprung off the spinning fan, and twirled high into the sky.

"Cool! I'm flying in the sky!" Link cheered as he spun with his hands out, landing on to a REALLY high green mushroom.

He collected the coins, and got on a second one. He rocketed into the sky, landed on a purple mushroom, and bounced off it. He was still spinning as he collected a vertical line of coins and ended with grabbing a Star Coin. He twirled downwards to the right, collecting some more coins as he made his descent on to a red mushroom with another Star Coin on it. He grabbed it, and jumped off it, landing on some blocks, and hitting both with his boomerang. One yielded a Fire Flower. The other a coin. Link dropped down and regained his firepower once again. He jumped up a couple of mushrooms, landed on a passing Koopa, and reached another tilting mushroom. Except this one went down…back up…tilted right...then went down again…back up…tilted left and repeat.

Link easily managed to get on the first one, and jumped on to the second one, nearly slipping off. This particular mushroom just simply went up and down. Link just grabbed the edge of the third, which moved like the first. He climbed on, and ran. He jumped just before the end of the third mushroom, snatched a Star Coin out of the sky, and made a horrible landing on to the fourth mushroom (which moved like the first and third), but at least he made it on to it at all.

He jumped back on to safe ground…which was a green mushroom. He burned a Koopa, making it fall off the side before it exploded into many, many flames. He saw a Red Ring, and lunged for it, falling through it, and landing on a group of mushrooms which liked to bob up and down. He saw 8 red coins, and collected the first 7, and lunged for the last one, but it disappeared just before Link touched it, and he fell on to the last bobbing mushroom.

A Koopa saw him on the floor like that, and decided to reach out over the ledge and punch him. He succeeded in this, blowing Link backwards and he lost his firepower again. To the Koopa's misfortune, he dropped forwards, and fell to his doom.

. . .

A shell crashed into the ground, knocking a climbing Mario off a vine and making him lose his power-up. Mario groaned from the fall. He was halfway there. The shell was on fire from how long it was falling, and Mario just sighed. If that hit him, he may have been knocked out. He decided to just wait.

. . .

Link jumped on to a tilting mushroom, and waited for it to tilt towards the black Flagpole before he jumped at it. He nabbed 8000 Points, and dropped down. He dashed off to find a way back down, and found a pipe. He entered it, and fell. He slid down the sides of the pipe slowly so he wouldn't get pipe burn or take fall damage.

Link popped out of the pipe, and that happened to be where Mario was, and he was knocked to the ground again. Mario groaned, and Link was thrown off.

"Sorry, I didn't know you were there."

Mario: By the way, were you the one who caused that flaming shell to knock me off that vine?

"It was on FIRE?" Link asked, slightly shocked by that. Mario didn't need a proper answer, and motioned for Link to follow him.

Mario stopped at a green Toad House. Link headed in there after they pooled their Star Coins to be able to kick down a Star Coin sign which wanted 5 Star Coins from them or else they wouldn't be able to go into the 1-UP Toad House, and after a couple of minutes, he came back with 3 1-UP Mushrooms.

"Now that we're ready, we can go into that Fortress." Link stated.

Link was suddenly bombed by a shell on fire, and lost his firepower…again.

"Ouch!"

Mario: Did you do that too?

"I may have made another Koopa fall off the mushrooms."

Mario sighed, and approached the Fortress. After having a staring contest with it, they rushed inside.

**1-Fortress**

They entered the Fortress, and gaped at how big it was. There was a Dry Bones at first glance, and Link tossed his Boomerang at it, making it a pile of bones. Link jumped up to the next ledge, and headed for one of the platforms that smashed against each other in the area where Link was just standing. Mario followed suit, but was nearly turned into Paper Mario by the platforms.

They jumped and dodged several more squishing platforms that were prepared in a similar fashion to the first. Soon they reached a spot where they didn't stand a chance of turning into pancakes, and caught their breath. They dashed past another part where they stood a chance of getting squished, and Link barely made it when they had to do it again. Link then bounced off a Dry Bones, and was foot-stooled jumped by Mario and fell into some concrete. Mario gave a sheepish grin, and grabbed a Star Coin nearby.

They went back, but Link was clobbered by the re-animated Dry Bones, and now, one more hit and he would be knocked out. Link took out his Fire Flower when he kicked the Dry Bones in the face, making it a pile of bones again, and gained his firepower back.

Mario decided to use his too, and absorbed the Fire Flower, becoming Fire Mario again. They jumped up some ledges, and although they didn't know it, they were roughly halfway up the Fortress.

"Hey Mario, why don't you take that dangerous spiky path, and I just go into the pipe?" Link suggested.

Mario just sighed as he skilfully dodged the spike blocks trying to spike him and climbed up the blocks that were moving back into the wall's vertical line, and sticking out one by one. At the top, there was a Star Coin between two ledges. Mario collected it, and jumped up the ledge. Parallel Blocks were moving into each other, which would crush Mario if he got caught in it. Mario instantly dodged these 3 times, and made it out safely.

During this time, Link slowly walked into the pipe, and was shot into the air, meeting Mario sliding down the wall on the left. Link was knocked back down, and fell to the floor. He groaned as he saw Mario go into a door that was to the side on a little ledge. Mario was in a whole new room, and dodging the moving blocks surrounding him, he collected the Star Coin there, and hastily made his way out, ignoring any feelings he felt as he left the room.

Mario came out of a door, and saw Link going back into the pipe. He went in too just before Link was shot out, and they both shot out of the pipe, landing on the ledge above.

Mario showed Link the two Star Coins he collected, and Link just pouted as they jumped up a couple of blocks, and they both climbed into a pipe, and shot out of it. On the sides, there were more blocks that could easily squish them, and they JUST made it out of the danger section as the blocks smashed against each other.

Neither of them decided to risk falling and getting squished for a block that could just have a single COIN, so they entered a special looking door…

They fell into a little room, and saw Bowser Jr.

Mario: Where's the Princess?

"Hahaha! She's in ANOTHER castle!" Bowser Jr cackled, unable to hide a grin from saying such an ancient line. "Hey, it's that elf boy with that sword he lost!"

"Elf boy?" Link said, hiding the anger in his voice. "Wait, how do you know I lost my sword?"

"Because I have it!" Bowser Jr laughed, waving it in his face.

Link was about to explode on the kid if Mario didn't hold him back.

"I'm gonna use it against you! And there's nothing you can do about it!"

Once he put away the sword, Bowser Jr ran at the two, Link instantly hitting him with the boomerang. Bowser Jr hid in his shell for a moment, and Mario jumped on him when he came out. He hid in his shell again, then attempted to run at them again, but was pelted by fireballs. He fell to the floor, and when Link tried to grab his sword back, Bowser Jr got up.

"Mario! For this, I'll make daddy dip that green guy in lava!" Bowser Jr growled as he jumped out of the castle.

Mario didn't say anything as they made it out in time to see Bowser Jr grab Peach from a cage and run to an actual castle.

"I hate that guy." Link instantly said after Bowser Jr was out of sight.

Mario: Luigi is in trouble! We have to hurry!

"Right."

They sprinted off towards the castle, where Luigi was held captive.

* * *

**Lamest boss battle ever. That took 73 words for the actual fight. -.-**

**Also, the word "mushroom" was used 23 times in 1-3. Just in case anyone wanted to know. ^^**


	3. Through Land, Air and Sea

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 3: Through Land, Air and Sea

**1-Fortress**

"Why are we back here?"

Mario: Because I feel we missed something here.

Mario led Link to the room surrounded by moving blocks which used to have one of the Star Coins. He motioned for Link to jump to where the door was, and told him to climb up to a higher moving block. Link gave him a look, and did so. Mario then jumped to the door, climbed up there too, and shoved Link to the right.

They found themselves in a new room somehow. Link's instincts suddenly blared, and he jumped, hitting a hidden coin block. He jumped around, and found four more hidden coin blocks and a 1-UP Mushroom.

"Nice! Wait, where did you get that shell?" Link asked, pointing at the blue shell Mario was holding. Mario used it, and became Shell Mario.

Mario: I got it from a red Toad House while I headed to the Fortress through the shortcut I found.

Mario started running, and jumped towards a line of 3 blocks blocking a gap under the low ceiling. The shell broke through the blocks one by one, until it got through. Mario came out of his shell on the other side of the room, and saw a barrier of three blocks blocking a pipe in. Link crawled through the low ceiling, and waited for Mario to do what he was about to do.

Mario started running again which himself withdraw into his shell and head towards where the blocks were. Link jumped over Mario, and watched him jump from the floor while still in his shell, hitting each and every one of the blocks with only two jumps. He came out again, and motioned Link to follow him. They went into the pipe…

…and came out of the fortress (while still very high in the sky), and fell towards the ground. Mario hid into his shell, and Link just grabbed on to Mario. When they hit the ground, Mario was spun out of his withdrawal, and Link was sent flying into the fortress wall.

"Horrible pipe placement…" Link groaned. "Hey, there's a red Flagpole!"

Mario: It means we've found a shortcut.

"That's just shell." Link cheered, barely able to keep himself from cracking up.

Mario: -.-*

Link carefully jumped to the flagpole using two groups of blocks (one being a lone block) and got 2000 Points. Mario jumped to the flagpole using the same blocks, but while in his shell, and got a 1-UP.

**1-Cannon**

"Eh…just a cannon leading to W5." Link moaned. "Whatever W5 is."

Mario: World 5.

"How'd you know?"

Mario: Don't worry about that.

They left the cannon, and went back on track to the castle…after kicking down another sign when they paid another 5 Star Coins for a Mega Mushroom House.

**1-4**

Mario instantly hid into his shell just before a hill. Link peeked down, and saw a line of Goombas, and smirked. He kicked Mario, and he smashed through the Goombas, and Mario kept going…not that it was easy to stop. Link saw a red block, and got himself a giant mushroom.

"THIS IS AWESOME!" Link cheered as he stomped through anything that moved.

. . .

Mario saw a block when he fell into a mini-hole, and bashed it. A little blue mushroom came out of it, and when it touched Mario, he lost his shell, and became REALLY small. He then caught a glimpse of a tiny pipe when he jumped (and he jumped pretty high) and headed for it. He entered it, and came out in what he depicted as a bonus room.

He saw some water, and ran into it. He ended up walking across it. Mario knew if Link saw him walking on the water, he wouldn't hesitate to make an overused pun. He jumped off the water at the end, and wall-jumped off the wall in front of him, landing on a platform near the ceiling which had a Star Coin. He nabbed it, and that was that.

. . .

Link smashed through everything. He stopped when he saw he passed a green pipe, and he then turned back to normal and pulled out his boomerang…and whacked one of the very few blocks he didn't smash which just so happened to be the only block stopping him from entering said pipe. Once it was open to enter, he leaped inside.

He came out in an underground-ish area. There was a kind of stair-case of blocks that didn't really look exactly like a stair-case, but they reminded him of one. Link saw a pair of blocks in the distance. He approached them, and jumped at them both. One was a coin, while the other was a blue switch (shaped like a rounded door).

He jumped on to the block that had a coin, and stepped on the switch. Blocks became coins. Coins became blocks. Link jumped on to the blocks to the left of him that used to be coins, and soon made it to a platform which had a Star Coin. Link wanted to make a pun, but no one was around to hear it, so he just mumbled it to himself quietly.

. . .

Mario made his way past the carnage Link caused, and saw him back-tracking to find the two remaining Star Coins he missed.

"I saw the Flagpole…I wanted to get the other two Star Coins, so I went back." Link trailed as he saw Mario wave his Star Coin at Link. "What? You got one too? Then where's the last one?"

Mario: Behind you…?

Link spun round, to see the glimmer of something beyond a low ceiling which had a pit where it became the lowest. Mario already zoomed at it.

"How'd you get small by the way?"

Mario: I did it to get the Star Coin. I didn't know it was in that small pipe, but it was, so I took it.

Mario had already slid down the hill on his butt, got under the low ceiling and past the small pit, and claimed the Star Coin. He made his way back as Link hit a block which revealed a Fire Flower.

"This'll give you something to grow on!" He chuckled as he tossed it at the tiny plumber.

Mario grew back to his normal, and gained his firepower. Link led Mario to the Flagpole just moments away, and after Link was done rolling on the floor in laughter at the Goombas who were freaking out because they were set on fire by Mario, they saw the black Flagpole.

Link made a daring leap…and got 100 Points. Mario made an impressive jump…and got 2000 Points.

The castle was close, but there were two paths. One had a mushroom in sight, while the other looked like a massive pool.

"Say, how about we both go to that area that looks like a mushroom…then go back to the water area?" Link suggested.

Mario: …can we get the water level over with first?

"You make a good point…water levels were always a pain."

Mario kicked down the sign after paying 5 star coins again to have a Mega Mushroom House able to be used whenever they needed…and kicked down another sign after pooling their Star Coins to be able to access the water level.

**1-A**

When they saw a pipe near some water, they knew it wouldn't be fun. They gulped as they headed underwater.

"How come I'm talking…but not dying underwater?" Link asked.

Mario: This world's logic.

"Ah, I sea what you mean."

Mario face-palmed as he blasted some Cheep Cheep with fireballs. Link saw some blocks, and broke the left and right ones, but obtained a Fire Flower when the middle block shot it out of the top. Link used it, and had his Blazing Boomerang again.

"Oh, yeah!" he smirked as all the fish nearby made an "O.O" face and started to flee when Link pulled out the Blazing Boomerang, defying logic.

Mario: I've been meaning to ask…how do you even hold on to that and how is it still even on fire?

"I dunno, but it works for me."

Mario: -.-*

Suddenly some Sushi (long blue sharks) were darting towards Link. He panicked, and tossed a boomerang at the first one. It bounced off its head and that Sushi fell to the seafloor. The boomerang curved into the underbelly of the second one, making it faint too.

"I would have made sushi out of them if I had my sword." Link chuckled.

Mario: That's actually what they're called.

Link just laughed harder at the information as he tossed his boomerang at some more Sushi…until he saw a P-Switch. He gestured for Mario to hit it, and when a Sushi snuck up on the plumber, Link scorched its underbelly, making it fall to the seabed just like the rest.

Mario bashed it, and some coins appeared to the right, going in a kind of ziz-zag pattern near some bouncy bubbles. Link swam to the coins, and managed to collect every single coin. Link did a stylish underwater pose, and they swam onwards. Soon they reached a Star Coin, but when Link swam up to get it, he hit his head on some hidden blocks, one yielding a Fire Flower. Link decided to take it, but then Mario beat him to the Star Coin. Link pouted as Mario gave a smirk.

Link saw a pipe, and headed up it. Mario heard the pipe noise, and turned round to see Link's feet going up into the pipe. Mario rushed backwards to the pipe before the invisible wall didn't let him go back, and barely made it up it. They popped up above ground, and Mario ignored Link doing a celebration dance at the fact there was no side-scrolling and snatched the visible Star Coin at the top. Link dived back into the pipe, and Mario quickly followed.

"How much longer?" Link groaned.

Mario: We're only halfway there…

Link moaned as he stopped near a Roulette Block. Mario timed his jump carefully…and bashed it, getting a Star.

"Looks like you landed in the stars, not the moon!" Link chortled.

Mario said nothing as he swam off, now invincible.

"Hey bub! Learn to share!" Link growled, chasing after him.

Mario stopped near some blowing pipes, and Link caught up, panting for air. Mario was about to give him a face as he hit a P-Switch, when something bit his butt. Mario turned round, and growled at the sniggering Sushi. He was amount to pummel it into next year, but Link tossed his boomerang, and finished it instead. Then the duo rushed for the coins, collected a good deal of them, and after dodging some mad Sushi, they saw a pipe at the end.

"SANCTUARY!" Link cried as he sped into the pipe, and when Mario poked his head out, he saw Link on the flagpole, who clearly hit the top and gain a 1-UP Mushroom. Mario made a jump, and got 4000 Points.

Mario suddenly ran off back to the lake area…and came back with a Star Coin. Link said nothing.

The team ignored a red Mushroom House and decided to save it for later, and they both made a dash to the mushroom area. They found a block with a long vine which took them back into the sky, and when the vine stopped, they jumped…landing on a red/yellow mushroom platform.

**1-5**

"Hey, a red winged block!" Link pointed as he shouted. He ran to hit it, but it went to the left, and there was now an enormous fall awaiting him if he made any attempt to get it. "Darn it!"

Mario ignored Link and jumped on to a pink mushroom…and started bouncing on it. Link noticed, and jumped on it too…and started bouncing on the mushroom too! Mario sprung off the mushroom, high into the air and punched a block quite high up. The block spat out a Fire Flower and Link bashed the two slightly lower blocks to either side of it, getting pretty much nothing. After he got his Fire Flower, he bounced onwards, reaching the first Star Coin. Link made a diving lunge after bouncing for it…but crashed into the bouncing mushrooms headfirst, now spinning as he bounced.

Mario rocketed off the mushrooms, and collected the Star Coin easily. Link flew over a Koopa who was on a green mushroom (which didn't bounce) and slid to a stop on its end. Mario saw the Koopa, and flew over it stylishly, then pounded it into its shell and sending it racing to the left. Link brought himself up, and watched Mario do the same to the first Koopa back on the pink mushrooms. It was knocked zooming to the right, and knocked out several other Koopas too.

Mario made his way over a little gap between mushrooms, and bounced of a red Koopa. He kicked it to the left, and bounced over another gap on to another pink mushroom. He landed steadily on the red/yellow mushroom which was visible just after the pink mushroom before it. Link caught up to Mario when he reached a pair of balancing platforms. Mario jumped on to the left one, and before he broke it by over-balancing the thing, Link jumped on to the right one. The left side was slowly going down, and the right was going up towards a Star Coin. Link nabbed it, and they both jumped off.

They jumped on to another pair of balancing platforms, and jumped on to the next pair before anything happened on the second. Link saw a pipe, and jumped on to the right one again. Mario noticed what Link was doing, and jumped on to the left one. Just like last time, Mario went down and Link went up. When he was high enough, Link made a leap for the pipe, and climbed up into it. Mario quickly followed.

"BONUS ROOM!" Link cheered as he and Mario climbed on to the red mushroom sticking itself out. The floor was made out of pink bouncy mushrooms, and there were coins in the sky. Mario nodded…it definitely was a bonus room. After riding on it for a bit and collecting some coins, they saw a Star Coin pretty high up. Link ran towards Mario, and jumped on his hands. Mario threw his hands up, sending Link into the air and swiping the Star Coin out of mid-air. When he landed, they gave each other a high-five and then jumped down…

Landing on a green mushroom, Mario bounced off a two Paratroopas (although one hit him and he attempted another jump on them, succeeding) and sending them downwards to the ground like a missile. Mario rapidly bashed some blocks ahead which were positioned above the pink mushrooms again, and gained a Fire Flower yet again. He powered up, and after a few bounces, he went through a red ring.

Mario got Red Coin 1 and 2. Link got 3, 4 and 5. Mario got 6 and 7. Link missed 8.

"Again?" he moaned.

After pounding some more Koopa Troopas (and getting hit till they only had one hit left), Mario and Link made it to four brick blocks. Mario jumped beneath them, and rapidly struck them; getting many coins and making two mushrooms come out of the two blocks which were hit. Link ate one of the said mushrooms, and stored the other. When Mario did it on the other two, another pair came out after an intense coin collecting session. Link attempted to nom on both of the mushrooms, but was blocked by Mario who ate one and stored the other.

Continuing again, Mario was hit by a Goomba, which Link destroyed 5 times over with his boomerang. Mario saw the black Flagpole, and bounced off the last pink mushroom, flipping in the air and getting 8000 Points. Link built up speed, and dived at the last pink mushroom, getting 1000 Points.

They jumped off, and now they had the castle in sight. Mario heard Luigi's cry, and sped off towards it, not knowing how his brother was doing, but knowing he had to help him.

* * *

**There, you got a somewhat long chapter before the boss of the world. Although the next chapter can't even be called short…since it's actually a nice length.**

**I like to separate the levels of a world from the world boss, so don't expect multiple levels in a boss chapter.**


	4. Dragon Slaying and Brother Saving

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 4: Dragon Slaying and Brother Saving

Mario held his determined look as he walked in slowly with Link by his side.

**1-Castle**

As soon as they walked in, the door closed.

Mario: Looks like we can't leave…

"Not that we'd want to." Link finished.

The two of them jumped up a ledge, and saw a tightrope. Link sweat-dropped.

"Uh…you go first."

Mario shrugged, and jumped up the rope. He carefully walked across it, and jumped off the end in time to dodge a jumping Podoboo. Link gulped, and jumped on to the tightrope. He slowly walked across, jumping over the same Podoboo Mario had

"That's how real heroes do it!" Link boasted.

Mario sighed, and jumped on to another tightrope, which was completely above lava. He calmly leaped to the other side, and waited for Link. Link closed his eyes, starting running and yelling something, then jumped off the edge, bouncing off the tightrope on landing, and crashing into Mario.

Mario gave Link a look, and threw him off. Link just shrugged once he got up. Onwards, there was a big moving gray block below a block. Mario stylishly leaped in the air, kicked the block and grabbed the edge of it. He noticed a Fire Flower came out, and climbed up the edge, gaining some firepower.

The plumber jumped off the block, JUST landing on another big moving gray block half submerged in lava. Link jumped after him, crashing on the gray block. Mario was able to not to laugh, and they jumped on to the next moving gray block.

"I've noticed…other than those balls of fire, I haven't seen any actual enemies." Link pointed out.

Mario: Usually, I'd expect Bowser to put a ton of enemies in his castles…

They jumped on to a gray block that was nearly 100% submerged, leaped off it in from the shock of being so close to getting burned, and finally met eyes with an enemy…who happened to be a Dry Bones.

"I bet dogs love that guy." Link said.

The Dry Bones heard that, and conked Link on the head with a bone. Mario quickly jumped on it, and fed a knocked out Link his own Mushroom. When the swordsman finally woke up, Mario rushed him past the pile of bones, and on to a higher ledge with a spike ceiling coming down on them. He let go of Link, and they both started sprinting…reaching a safe spot before the ceiling was even halfway down.

"Well…that was anti-climatic."

Once the ceiling was going back up again, they made another sprint for the end, running past a safe spot, and the spike ceiling was nearly upon them. Link dived for the next safe spot, and slid into it. Mario was about to be crushed, so he ran even faster, and faster, and faster, and lunged for the spot. Mario barely made it, and to emphasize how close he was to being crushed, one of his shoes was caught on the spikes. Mario sighed, and pulled out a new shoe, putting it on his foot and waiting for the spiked ceiling to rise back up.

"You get points for that." Link chuckled.

Mario wasn't sure if that was a compliment, or another bad pun. He assumed it was the latter, and made a sprint for the next safe spot. Link realized Mario had run onwards, and dashed after him. After hopping up, then down a short ledge, he saw Mario (in a safe spot) looking up…at a Star Coin. Link instinctively hopped on to his head, jumped off one of the lowering walls, and snatched the Star Coin. Mario stepped out of the way, and Link crashed into the floor. Once they were both ready and the ceiling went up again, they jumped out of the mini-hole which was also a safe spot, starting running, and leaped towards a tightrope, escaping the danger of the spiked ceiling. Mario jumped off the tightrope and hit a block. Link saw a Fire Flower pop out, and leaped off the rope and snatched the Fire Flower, storing it and noming his Mushroom.

Mario sighed, and leaped off the tightrope, over a moving gray block, on to another tightrope, barely dodging a Podoboo. Link did the same, and went soaring too. He landed on Mario, and the plumber nearly tipped off the rope…but rebalanced himself. He gave Link a dark look, and the swordsman sweat-dropped. Mario shook of his shock, and jumped over the short tightrope above on to a tightrope ahead. He then leaped off of it, bonked a Dry Bones on a moving gray block on the head, bounced off of its head on to a very small gray block with a Star Coin. He grabbed it, and leaped to a tightrope above before the block re-submerged itself into the lava.

"Come on, slow down! I can't keep up!" Link panted, following most of Mario's movements.

Mario eventually reached a long tightrope with several Podoboos jumping out in random places. Link dodged, weaved and ducked to avoid them all, and ended up bouncing on Mario's head and accidentally jumped into a pipe high up.

Link came out of the pipe in a very small room with a Star Coin. He simply grabbed it, and headed back through the pipe.

He landed on Mario when he came out of the pipe, and once again nearly got him burned by the lava.

Mario: Are you trying to make me fall?

"I dunno." Link shrugged. "It's probably just my terrible timing."

Mario sighed, and jumped off the rope towards a rising/sinking gray block with a Dry Bones on it. Link tossed his boomerang at it from the tightrope, and it smashed the Dry Bones in the head, and he became a pile of bones. Link jumped there too, and they hopped to the next moving block, and hastily leaped to safe ground, dodging the last Podoboo.

There was a lone door here.

Mario looked at Link. He nodded. They slowly walked in.

They entered a silent passageway with statues of Bowser, one after another. They jumped up a slightly higher ledge, and saw a brown platform moving up and down. They walked into the area, and the way they came into the room was blocked off suddenly by some iron blocks.

Mario looked up, and saw Luigi dangling on a rope. Luigi sadly glanced at Mario, and continued to look at the lava below. Link looked straight, and saw Bowser Jr, and gave a dark look to him. Bowser Jr laughed at him, and waved a sword at Link.

"GIVE. BACK. MY. SWORD." Link ordered, gritting his teeth.

Bowser Jr heard something, dropped the sword and jumped off to the right, that side being blocked by iron blocks too, although there was a small hole in one of the lower blocks.

"My sword!" Link cheered, happily skipping towards the dropped weapon.

Mario could feel someone's presence. It was waiting for Link to grab the sword!

Mario: Link, stop!

It was too late. Link had grabbed the sword. Mario knew he had to take action and grabbed Link. He sprinted back to their side, and suddenly, they were knocked to the floor by a heavy quake. They then heard a roar. Link got up and whipped 'round to see Bowser. Mario flipped off his back and prepared for battle.

"Grah ha ha ha! Mario! And your elf friend!" Bowser called. "Time to get burned!"

Mario: What's with everyone and puns?

"My awesome puns must be rubbing off on everyone, eh, eh?" Link said, nudging Mario.

Bowser was walking towards the duo. Mario noticed this, and started pelting Bowser with fireballs. Bowser dodged most of them, but didn't realize this was a decoy as Link jumped into the air and prepared to smash him with his newly regained sword. Bowser instinctively hid into his shell, and Link smashed on to the shell. The shock of such rock hard defence made Link vibrate for a while before falling out of the air. Bowser prepared to kick Link away while he was down, but Mario quickly threw a carefully aimed fireball at Bowser's face.

Bowser cried out in pain as Link scampered off.

"Thanks, Mario!"

Mario winked, and started aiming another fireball at Bowser. Too bad Bowser suddenly let out an enormous flame which could easily hit anything in a straight line. Link jumped on to the brown platform that was moving up, and Mario dived to the floor. Bowser roared in frustration, and ran at Mario. The plumber realized the flames had stopped, back-flipped away from the claws that could have raked his hat off.

Link then leaped off the platform at its peak, and smashed down on Bowser's head, damaging him pretty well.

"YOU'VE ASKED FOR IT NOW!" Bowser roared, the force of his roar sending Link flying into Mario, except the plumber jumped over Link, and he ended up crashing into the wall instead, making his Fire Flower fall out of his clothes. Mario started running towards Bowser, fighting against the wind. Bowser finally stopped roaring, and prepared the blast another beam of fire at the duo. Mario backed off, and ran to Link instead.

Mario slapped Link awake, and pointed at Bowser. Link started asking questions, but Mario didn't have time to speak. He threw Link to the floor, and dived to the floor too.

"Sheesh, talk about assertive."

Mario: Do you want to get burned?

That silenced Link, and Mario cupped his hands together. He signalled for Link to jump off of them. He ran, and jumped on Mario's hands, the plumber pushing his hands into the air, flinging Link higher and the swordsman starting spinning like a wheel with his sword sticking out. He began to look more and more like a spiked wheel, and spun into Bowser, who defended by putting his hands up and blocking the attack.

His hands were getting damaged slightly every second he held the attack back, and managed to throw the spinning Link backwards over his head, into the wall, and he took major damage. Mario ran for the Fire Flower Link dropped, and tossed it over Bowser's head, and Link was powered up. Link finally slipped off the wall and landed on a switch.

The bridge started blowing up from the left, so Mario made a mad dash to where Link was, but had to go through Bowser. Mario quickly pelted Bowser with fireballs, making him lose his balance and fall into the lava. Mario quickly dived towards the only safe part, and they watched Bowser get burned.

"Looks like Bowser's the one who got burned, huh?" Link joked.

Mario just looked on in shock at the scene.

He roared in pain as he rose from the lava. He then sank back in. Bowser rose once again, this time as a skeleton…who Mario decided to call Dry Bowser. Dry Bowser roared, catching something at the corner of his eye. He never looked sadder than he did once he knew who was watching.

"That's GRAPHIC." Link stated, Mario nodding in agreement.

Luigi was still dangling on the rope. It was about to snap. The lava slowly flowed elsewhere, and soon there was no visible lava in the pit. Mario tried to think of a way to save Luigi.

Just then, the rope snapped.

"MARIO!" Luigi cried, starting to fall.

Mario lunged at Luigi in a last ditch effort to save him. Sadly, he missed, and fell into the pit with his brother. Link had no idea what to do as the blocked exit behind him opened.

Mario forced himself to dive faster. He nearly was able to grab Luigi's only available arm. He reached out for Luigi's arm…and he barely grabbed it. A boomerang was then heard. Mario looked up, and knew it was Link's. The boomerang curved underneath Mario, and started pushing him back up. This was bringing Luigi back up too. They were about to come out of the pit…but Mario's grip on Luigi's arm was slipping. Suddenly, Luigi had an idea.

"Bro just let me go." Luigi asked.

Mario: Why?

"I have a plan. Just trust me." Luigi answered.

Mario: So you'll be OK?

"Yeah. I'll see you when I see you." Luigi said, letting go of Mario's hand and falling into the depths of the deep, dark, dangerous pit.

Mario soared out of the pit, landing stylishly next to Link, who caught his boomerang.

"Where's Luigi?"

Mario made a sad face, pointed into the pit then shrugged, and they strolled on through the newly opened exit. There, they saw Bowser Jr and Princess Peach. Link waved his sword at Bowser Jr, and he growled. But he smirked, pulling out some bombs.

"Those are MY bombs!" Link shouted.

"Not anymore!" Junior said, throwing one at Mario, who was rushing at him. The bomb bounced off of Mario, knocking him over and making him roll into Link. Junior then tail whipped the bomb into the two of them, making them lose their firepower.

Princess Peach winced, and tried to get out of Bowser Jr's grasp, but he wasn't going to let go any time soon. He then started to run off. Mario and Link got up, and chased after Peach and her captor towards the desert ahead…


	5. Desert Trek

**I nearly forgot to update today. Just a little titbit about me, I have a TERRIBLE memory. Honestly, if you knew me well, you'd know that off by heart.**

* * *

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 5: Desert Trek

**2-1**

"I wonder where the others are." Link said to himself.

Mario shrugged, managing to hear Link's words.

The plumber and swordsman were walking through the desert now. They walked up a tiny slope and noticed two pairs of blocks. Mario bashed a pair, and they were just coins. Link bashed a pair, and there was a coin and a Fire Flower.

Link climbed up the side of the block, and munched the Fire Flower, gaining a flaming sword and a blazing boomerang. Link lunged himself at the tall Pokey towering over them, and hacked at each part off till he could slash the head, cutting it into three flaming pieces.

Mario just trekked onwards, stepping over the flaming remnants of the Pokey. Soon, he saw a Spiny walking under some blocks, chilling in the shade. Link picked up the Spiny, and tossed it at another Pokey blocking their path, knocking it over like a domino. Mario bashed the three blocks it was under, and they were also coins.

There was a Star Coin in the distance, hovering in the air where a Pokey was sliding about. He ran until he was about to run out of ground to run on, and leaped over the Pokey, nabbing a Star Coin during the jump. Link applauded this, and slashed his way through the Pokey instead. Mario sighed.

Mario: Ever since you've gotten that sword, you've been hacking and slashing at anything that even looks at you funny. Give it a break, do you see me using my hammer to whack anything and everything?

"You have a hammer on you?"

Mario nodded, showing him a nice, strong black hammer…and then put it away.

"So, for the whole of our journey through that grassland, you could have used that hammer at any point?"

Mario nodded.

"Man, you have some self-control."

Mario nodded, and jumped on to a up-down moving platform before a very large Pokey. Link attempted to jump on to it, but barely missed it, and started to fall. Mario quickly grabbed his hand however, and swung him back and forth until he had enough momentum to throw him at the Pokey at full force. Link stuck his sword out, and pierced through it, and then the next one in a little pit on another up-down platform…and then a third in the same situation as the second, and smashed into a wall. Mario winced at the impact, and ran over to Link.

He was dazed and sinking into quicksand. Mario jumped into it, and pulled him out after quite the struggle. Mario then took out a book and started reading. Link soon came to, and Mario put his book away. He then pointed at a Pokey on a up-down platform circling a Star Coin, and Link threw himself at it.

In moments, the Pokey was sliced and diced…all the scorching pieces falling into the quicksand. Mario snagged the Star Coin that was once guarded, and they climbed up the edge of a ledge. Another Pokey was on another up-down platform, and Link hurled his Blazing Boomerang at it several times…and it was no more.

They hopped on to the now unoccupied up-down platform, and on to safe ground again. Mario darted over to a group of four blocks, and bashed all four, three with coins, one with a Fire Flower. Mario used it on the spot.

"Now, Mario, remember: DON'T play with fire." Link chuckled.

Mario couldn't think of a response to that, and just hopped to a ledge. He aimed his hand at a Pokey that was getting moved to one platform to another by a right-left platform, and when it was moving the least, he fired. The fireball bounced off the ledge he was on, and into the face of the Pokey, defeating it instantly.

Link just gaped at how easily Mario took down that Pokey, and by the time he snapped out of it, Mario was aiming another fireball at another Pokey in the distance! Link hopped from ledge to ledge, reaching Mario the moment he fired, and got to watch him defeat another Pokey with one shot. Link could see a Star Coin on a ledge quite a while away, and after a short round of plat-forming, he managed to take the coin…not noticing Mario defeat a third Pokey with two very accurate shots, one lowering the Pokey to a suitable height, and another to get it in the eye.

Soon, the plumber reached an endless cycle of platforms going up, and a short hop away, there was an endless cycle of platforms going down. Mario hopped on to the ones going up, and shot a fireball downwards on to one of the platforms going down, which was timed so perfectly that the fireball bounced off of the platform and into the face of the Pokey, causing it to fall off the up-down platform it was on. Mario hopped over it towards safe ground.

"What the…" Link gaped. "How'd you manage to get rid of that one too?"

Mario shrugged.

"Eh, either way, there's a pipe behind you."

Mario looked behind himself, to see there actually was a pipe there, and ran through it.

. . .

Mario popped out of the other side, and bashed the first three blocks in sight, the first and third with coins, and the second with a P-Switch. He threw Link up there to hit it, and at the top of a little staircase, coins in a formation that seemed like a bridge to get over the Pokey below them turned into blocks. Link quickly crossed the bridge, and lunged at the flag at the end, getting 2000 Points. Mario took the time to shoot the Pokey in the eye before crossing the bridge and jumping at the flagpole, gaining 8000 Points.

They slid down the flag, and walked onwards, ignoring the fireworks in the background.

"Hey, was that house always there?" Link asked, pointing to a Giant Mushroom house.

Mario shook his head.

"What's even in there?"

Mario: A Toad who'll give you a Giant Mushroom.

"How'd you know?"

Mario shrugged, and said it was just an assumption. They continued to walk, reaching vegetation now.

**2-2**

They passed a palm tree, and saw three bouncy stringed platforms, each with a Red Koopa on it. Suddenly, all three Koopas did a little hop at once.

"These Koopas can DANCE? The heck?"

Link turned to Mario for an explanation, but he was on the floor laughing. Link just shook his head and claimed a Fire Flower from a block nearby. They dashed onwards, leaping over a little pit and over some slightly higher ground.

"Hey, what's that thing forming up there?" Link asked as he ran.

Mario: It's a Lakitu…

Mario said "Lakitu" like it was a menace. The word left a nasty aftertaste in his mouth, which caused him to shudder, with good reason too.

"Great." Link groaned, watching Mario stop to climb up some blocks and snag a Fire Flower for storage from the highest one on the left. They continued to run, not wanting to deal with their cloud-riding enemy.

A Spiny was thrown JUST over Link's head, and the swordsman quickly hopped over it. Another was bowled at Mario, who suddenly turned around and did a somersault over it. The Lakitu growled, and hurled one at Link, which bashed him on the head and made him lose his power-up. They continued to flee until Link stopped.

"I can feel a Star Coin high up in the air."

Mario looked grim. Link shuddered. They knew what they had to do.

. . .

Mario was holding Link, aimed at the air, and threw him with all his might, knocking the Lakitu out of the sky and Link quickly grabbed the cloud, riding in it towards the sky, following a trail of coins straight into a Star Coin.

Link could feel someone approach him. He whirled around to see the same Lakitu from before…in a new cloud. It flew towards him, and snapped its fingers. The cloud Link was riding in disappeared, and he fell to the ground.

Mario ran over to him. Link got up, dusted himself off, and showed Mario the Star Coin he got. They high-fived each other.

Mario jumped over the pit to a pipe, and quickly jumped off it. Mario ground pounded where he was standing, breaking a group of four blocks in a square formation and entering a somewhat safe area away from the Lakitu. Mario saw a Star Coin. He nabbed it. Link checked the pipe Mario was once on, and nearly got his face bitten off by a Piranha Plant. He fell into the somewhat safe area, and met up with Mario.

The Lakitu rained the area they were in with Spinies.

"This Lakitu has us boxed in! What do we do?"

"CALL ME LAKITHUNDER!"

Mario jumped through the ledge above them. Link sweat-dropped.

Mario continued to run, followed closely by Link. The Lakitu continued to bomb them with Spinies, which Mario had to stop with carefully aimed fireballs. Then, a group of Spinies who hadn't been fire-balled did a couple of hops, turning back, then forth.

Mario said nothing.

Link said nothing.

The Lakitu said nothing.

"Apparently, these enemies have learned to dance in their spare time." Link said, breaking the silence.

Mario nodded. The Lakitu took this chance to toss a Spiny at Mario's head, and it bonked him in the head, causing him to lose that very useful power-up. In the meantime, Link had ran towards a pit below a line of blocks, and jumped over it, hitting the two middle blocks and barely making it across the pit. One of the two blocks he hit let out a Fire Flower.

Mario quickly jumped up there and sprinted for it, nabbing it and using it before the Lakitu could make any movements whatsoever. He hopped over a pit, shot down a Spiny, climbed up a ledge, hit a block revealing a Fire Flower, watching Link eat it and regain his burning items, dodged several more Spinies, and entered a green pipe that shot him up into the sky…straight into a yellow pipe. Link noticed this, and jumped in the same green pipe, getting shot into th same yellow pipe.

. . .

They were in the sky now. There were two green pipes in the middle of the area, and there was a red pipe on the other side. Mario entered the left green pipe, and Link entered the right green pipe. Both of them shot out of the pipes at the same time, collecting a ton of coins on the way up and the fall down. At the peak of their flight, there was a Star Coin, which they both snatched, and fell down holding it. When they hit the ground, Mario bounced off the left green pipe, and fell into the red pipe, letting go of the Star Coin and allowing Link to obtain it.

. . .

Mario popped out of the end of the red pipe, landing on some grass. He heard Link pop out of the red pipe too, and stepped to the side to avoid getting fallen on. Link saw the Lakitu approach them, holding a Spiny on one hand.

"You'll never take me alive!" Link shouted, throwing his Blazing Boomerang at the Lakitu…who just flew out of the way of it. The Boomerang came back, and Link caught it. "Darn."

Link jumped, and tried to slash the Lakitu…but missed by quite a lot. The Lakitu threw a Spiny at Link's head. Mario put his hand up, and shot the Spiny with a fireball. Mario then raised his other arm, and shot a fireball at the Lakitu, yawning and hardly paying much attention to where he was aiming. The fireball bounced off a tilting mushroom, and curved straight into the Lakitu, causing it to cry out and fly away.

"I'll be back! Don't you forget me!" it shouted, cruising off. "And my name is LAKITHUNDER!"

The Lakitu chucked a lightning bolt at Link. Mario pushed Link out of the fire of the thunderbolt, and the last attack failed. Link was going to shout at Mario for pushing him to the floor randomly...then realized why he was pushed.

"I nearly got struck by thunder!"

Mario: You can't see thunder.

"Huh, I never did know the difference. By the way, if we actually see that Lakitu again, be sure to punch me, OK, Mario?"

Mario nodded, and the two of them jumped on to a tilting Mushroom, and ran up it towards the flagpole. Mario hurled himself at it, netting 8000 Points. Link timed his jump wrong, and only got 2000 Points. They slid down it, and continued their desert trek.

* * *

**I may post the next chapter with this because it's pretty short...but maybe I won't. Who knows...**


	6. Stay Out of the Water

**I would have posted this hours ago, but my computer bugged out on me, and delayed it.**

**Also, short chapter. I should deal with that somehow...maybe with another chapter? Perhaps, I would guess.**

* * *

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 6: Stay Out of the Water

**2-3**

"Ooh, look, a pipe!" Link said, pointing at a green pipe. "There's no other way to proceed, so how about we go in there?"

Mario nodded, and they entered.

. . .

Mario popped out of the pipe, and landed on a pretty steep slope, and was sliding down within moments. He ploughed through a couple of Koopas who were strong enough to walk up this somewhat steep slope, and slid off the end of it, into a bigger room. Link slid off the end of it too, and bounced off Mario's head and landed safely.

Link led the way through the tunnel, and came across a manhole blocking their way.

"I'm guessing we're in the sewers…so you're in your element, Mario." Link cracked up at that last part, end Mario rolled his eyes, wall-jumping up into a hidden tunnel, with a Star Coin at the end. Mario slid back down, and waited till Link had stopped laughing on the floor.

Now that he had stopped, Mario ground-pounded through the manhole, causing it to spin on the spot. Link wasn't exactly good at ground-pounding, so he jumped and pointed his sword downward, and it seemed to have the same effect.

Mario slid down a short slope, and went through a one-way path. Link quickly caught up with him, jumped over his head and recklessly ran through the tunnels. A Swooper swooped down, and gnawed on Link's head, causing him to lose his power-up. Mario burned the small bat, causing it to release its grip on Link and spiral towards the floor. Link rubbed his head.

"That was painful."

Mario handed him a Fire Flower he found from a nearby block, and he used it to gain his power-up again. He then jumped over a one-way drop, and hopped over a wall to land on a manhole. He down-thrust his sword through the manhole, going through two more before bouncing off the slope at the bottom and landing in a heap slightly to the right.

Mario came running, did a short hop over him, and continued running. Link got up, and chased after him. Link came to a stop when he saw Mario kick down what made a path a one-way path, and used it as a bridge to walk across, getting closer to a Piranha Plant that was biting the air between it and Mario wildly. He sweat-dropped, and finished it off with a fireball.

From where the Piranha Plant once was, Link hopped up to a small space on a higher platform, and leaped up for a Star Coin, going through a ledge and landing in a pile again. He put away the Star Coin, and dropped through a one-way drop, and did the same with another. He saw Mario waiting for him at the end, and they walked onwards.

The duo ran through the tunnel, reaching a long slope. They slid down it, landing in some water.

"Yuck, this better not be…"

Mario: Don't even go there.

Link was silenced. They walked through the "water", and saw a ledge, and hopped through it, to find a P-Switch. Link slashed it, causing the water to rise. They quickly swam up to the ceiling, and kept swimming up there till they popped out of the water. Mario spotted a second P-Switch, and rushed over to it. He punched it, causing the water to rise even higher. They scrambled to the right wall, and swam up, barely making it into a tunnel before the water went back down.

After some walking, Mario and Link reached a pipe.

. . .

"Hey, that flag's red!" Link pointed out, staring at the red flagpole.

Nevertheless, they lunged at it, Mario getting 200 Points, and Link getting 100 Points.

. . .

"Look, an oasis!"

Link rocketed towards it, Mario just shrugged, and walked after him.

**2-A**

By the time Mario had caught up to Link, he had hopped over a gap between two platforms and was about to dive into the water for a Star Coin.

Mario saw the water churn, and could just make out something spiky swimming in the water. He gasped.

Mario: Spike Bass. Stay out of the water. He will eat your face.

Link stopped mid-jump, looked at him, and realized you can't stand on air.

Link fell into the water, managing the collect the Star Coin during his very short descent in.

The Spike Bass swam towards him, like a rocket. Link cried out, trying to hop out of the water.

It was getting closer…

Closer…

It was right behind him.

He yelped, but it didn't help but make the Spike Bass move faster.

It jumped.

…and it was shot down by Mario.

Mario: I warned you, stay out of the water. That thing was about to eat your face.

Link shuddered, and quickly scrambled out of the water, Star Coin in hand.

"I never knew this world could be so dangerous."

Mario just jumped up to a higher platform and carried on through the oasis. Link realized he was gone, and ran after him.

The Spike Bass was approaching Mario, who was on a spinning propeller. The moment it jumped at him, Mario was propelled into the air, slowly landing on another spinning propeller…on to a third spinning propeller…on to a fourth spinning propeller…on to a fifth, and on to a sixth, where he carefully glided down by following a string of coins, which led him to a Star Coin. Mario grabbed it, and landed on a Red Koopa on a platform, which gave him a boost up to a little gap in the ground overhead. There was a yellow pipe there.

. . .

Mario popped out of the other end, and saw a red pipe and the third Star Coin, which he of course took before going through the pipe and running to the flagpole, netting 1000 Points. After a couple of minutes, Link joined him, getting 400 Points.

Mario: What took you so long?

"No reason. Let's just say, I checked out the other exit." Link said.

As they walked through the desert, they reached a cannon.

Mario: No.

. . .

Walking the other way, they reached a pipe that got them to the castle.

Mario: No.

. . .

"We're probably going to have to backtrack…ugh." Link moaned, but suddenly remembered something that cheered him up. "That reminds me, watch this!"

Link snapped his fingers.

**2-3**

The two of them landed right on to an orange P-Switch, causing the water to rise.

Mario: You can teleport?

"How'd you think I got here?"

Mario shrugged, and swam through the ledge, this time following the arrow sign that was pasted on the wall of a little tunnel up ahead. They swam towards it, and into the next area.

Link ran ahead recklessly. Mario heard Link yelp, and ran to where the sound came from. Link was in the jaws of a massive Piranha Plant. He was about to be eaten. Mario slowly raised his arms, and they met above his head. A fireball generated there, and Mario lowered it to hip level and charged it up. He targeted the Piranha Plant, and fired the charged fireball at it.

The fireball blew up the plant in one shot, somehow not harming Link, and he fell to the floor. Once he came to, he instantly munched the Fire Flower he had in his tunic. Mario helped him back up, and they continued through the tunnels.

Mario led them through the higher path, and they came out of the left side. Link ran ahead to see a small Piranha Plant. With a hack and a slash, it was done for. Link hopped up several ledges, taking the shorter path and reaching the peak of the path he took. He ran, and fell off the edge of the ledge, landing on the ledge he was aiming for, and took the Star Coin that was waiting for him there.

He met up with Mario again, and they took the path on the right side of where they entered this section. Going through several ledges, they hopped through a manhole. Link looked like he was going to burst with energy as they made their way to a red ! Switch.

Mario stepped on it, and they fell through some one-way drops. They quickly climbed up a ledge nearby, and ran through a one-way path on to the newly created red blocks and towards the green pipe at the end.

. . .

Exiting said green pipe, there was a spring on it. Link dropped it in front of the flagpole, and watched Mario bounce off of it into the sky. Link sprung off of it too, only to get stepped on by Mario as he fell, and was used as a stepping stone to get the top of the flagpole. Link ended up falling down and getting 800 Points instead.

Link gave Mario a dark look as they slid down the flagpole. Mario just grinned sheepishly.

"I'm seriously worried about the others...who knows where they could have landed. Even in lava! Ugh, I shudder to think about what could of happened to them…"

Mario patted Link's shoulder.

Mario: Don't worry about it, who knows, you might find one of them in the next few seconds for all we know!

"Poyo!"


	7. Dune Buddies

"I'm_ seriously worried about the others...who knows where they could have landed. Even in lava! Ugh, I shudder to think about what could of happened to them…"_

_Mario patted Link's shoulder._

_Mario: Don't worry about it, who knows, you might find one of them in the next few seconds for all we know!_

_"Poyo!"_

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 7: Dune Buddies

"There's only one person who says...KIRBY?!" Link gasped, staring at a little pink puffball standing before him.

Kirby floated towards Link, and landed on his head as they walked.

"Poyo." He said again. "Yeah, that's me."

"What even happened to you?"

"I landed in an oasis. I swam out, and relaxed there for a while. I just left the place a while ago."

Mario: Did you see the fish?

Kirby nodded.

"Also, have you seen my Cutter anywhere? I lost it when I landed."

Mario and Link shook their heads.

Kirby made a sad face.

"Ah…I'll just stick around with you guys anyway. By the way, what ARE you doing here?"

Mario explained everything that happened…from the Prologue, all the way to Chapter 5. Kirby didn't seem like he was paying much attention though, but seemed to get the gist of it anyway.

"Now, let's keep moving, I don't want to be in this desert all day."

**2-4**

Mario, Link and Kirby continued to walk through the desert, Kirby sleeping on Link's head. Link jumped up to an orange P-Switch on a ledge, and stomped it, causing the sand behind him to rise like a lump. Mario was standing in the middle of it, so it really startled him when it happened. There was a Fire Flower in a block up there, so the plumber picked it up, and threw it down at Kirby.

The pink puffball's mouth wasn't open, so nothing happened and it just bounced off his head…although it did wake him up.

"Poyo?"

Link picked up the dropped Fire Flower, and handed it to Kirby. He just put it away, and floated off of Link's head. Kirby floated to the ground, and inhaled the first enemy he saw, which was a Goomba. Mario gaped at this.

"You see, Kirby eats stuff and takes their powers." Link explained.

Mario: Oh, Kirby, you don't want to eat that Goomba…they're pretty weak.

Kirby spat out the Goomba, and it looked like he had spat out a star. The star went straight into a Green Koopa on some blocks, defeating it on the spot. Mario and Link followed the star, going under the blocks instead of over, and took out the Goombas there.

Ahead, there was a Green Paratroopa…who was smacked out of the sky by Kirby's Wooden Hammer.

"Kirby also has a Wooden Hammer and a Final Cutter which he uses as his basic weapons, the latter he's apparently lost."

Mario leaped over a little pit and threw a little path, which led him to a green pipe sticking out in mid-air sideways with a Piranha Plant popping out occasionally. Mario timed his jump in time with it, and landed on the pipe with no injuries. He snagged the Star Coin up there, and made his way back.

Link approached a Red Koopa. It looked like it knew kung-fu. Link sharpened his sword, then lunged himself at it. The Koopa chopped at Link, but he back-flipped out of the way just in time. The Koopa attempted to get Link in a submission, but nearly got its head sliced off.

The Koopa cross-chopped Link, sending him to the floor. Link picked up his Scorching Sword, and did a Spin Attack, knocking it into some ground. Link did a Jump Attack, weakening him. The Koopa was on the floor now. Link prepared to do a Fatal Blow, but he was Seismic Tossed straight into Kirby who was flying overhead.

The two of them fell to the ground, and the Koopa approached them, hands ready to devastate. At the very moment they were about to be punched in the face, Mario came out of nowhere, and landed before the Koopa. They bowed, and Mario jumped over a Cross Chop. He ground-pounded the Koopa, and it was sent zooming off the edge in its shell.

"Well, for a Koopa, he was very skilled." Link said, picking up his Blazing Boomerang and regaining his Scorching Sword and dropping down some edges.

Mario: Seriously, if you thought that was random, you haven't seen anything yet.

Once they reached the bottom, they noticed there was water. Link hopped on to a green pipe mostly submerged in water, and ducked. He could see a tiny pipe to the left of where they entered.

"Anyone have any Mini-Mushrooms?"

"Poyo." Kirby said, spitting a Mini-Mushroom at Mario, turning him into Mini-Mario.

"I bet you could find a cow in there, if you looked hard enough." Link said, talking about Kirby's stomach. Kirby sweat-dropped, and tried to whistle innocently.

Mario had already ran inside the small pipe.

. . .

Soon, Mario came back, now in a Blue Shell.

Mario: It was a shortcut that brought me to a red flagpole. It led me to a red Toad House, and then to a level far ahead of this one.

"Well, that was a waste of time, I guess."

"Nice shell." Kirby said.

Mario led the way to a Blue P-Switch, which ended up causing quite a lot of coins to appear. Link pointed out there might be a secret underwater path in the water, and Mario led the way, swimming masterfully underwater, finding a very low route, which led to a couple of pipes, one blocking the other with a Piranha Plant popping out every once in a while. All three of them dodged it, and made it to the red pipe at the end, entering it.

. . .

It was a simple swim to the red pipe at the end…nothing much really happened.

. . .

Mario, Link and Kirby came out of the red pipe in an area inaccessible from the outside. Mario shell-dashed towards the Star Coin in the distance, Link hit a P-Switch causing a lump of sand to form, and Kirby just plopped himself on Link's head and they all made it out of the inaccessible area from the outside. Mario rammed through the Koopas on the ledge they were on in his shell, and they soon reached a long crater with some Piranha Plants munching the thin air around them.

Link bashed the two blocks at the start of the crater, one having a Fire Flower which he took, and the other having a P-Switch. Mario mowed down the Piranha Plants there, and once it was all clear, Kirby plopped himself on the P-Switch, causing a pair of lumps to form out of the sand. They quickly made their way out of the crater, and Link fought off the Hammer Bros ahead, getting smashed on the head by a hammer and losing his power-up, but getting a well-earned Star Coin.

"When will there be something that's WORTH eating?" Kirby asked himself.

Mario and Link exchanged a glance, and shrugged in unison, then stomped on a pair of Koopas. The trio climbed up a staircase, and lunged at the flagpole at the end.

Mario got 2000 Points.

Link got 400 Points.

Kirby got 8000 Points.

Mario and Link slid down the flagpole, and Kirby just flew down and finally walked himself.

"Oh, look, a fortress." Link said, not at all shocked by the sudden appearance of a large tower which could also be called a fortress. "Let's check it out."

**2-Fortress**

Mario, Link and Kirby were now inside the fortress. They hopped up a ledge, and lunged on to a sort of Ferris Wheel that had platforms rather than carriages. Then they saw a second Ferris Wheel a short hop away, all making the jump to it. They rode it up, hopped on some blocks at the top, Link claiming a Fire Flower from one of the blocks.

Soon another Ferris Wheel platform came along, and they all piled on to it. A Dry Bones nearby managed to get on the same platform as the three heroes, and clonked Link on the head with a bone before getting hacked to pieces.

"I guess he had a bone to pick with me!" Link chuckled. Kirby soon understood the joke, and started laughing too. Mario just rested his face in his palm as they hopped off the platform and on to one that wasn't moving. There was a rope above their heads, and Mario latched on to it, climbing to the other side carefully.

Link slowly approached the edge of the ledge, and grabbed the rope. He slowly crossed it, swinging his legs forward to do so.

"Psshaw, I could get across MUCH cooler than both of you combined." Kirby stated, walking across thin air like it was solid ground and making it to the other side perfectly fine. Mario and Link were dumbfounded. "See? Told ya I could do better."

Mario: I'm not even going to question the logic behind that.

They approached and climbed up the ledge nearby, and jumped on another Ferris Wheel, and riding up till they saw a rope…until Mario and Link realized Kirby wasn't with them any more.

"There's a door back here!" Kirby shouted on a little space on solid ground, pointing upwards. Mario and Link were there in moments after Link watched Mario cross the rope and go into a corner past a wall, coming back with a Star Coin. They all walked into the door.

. . .

There was an upside down "U" shaped formation of shiny golden blocks on a wheel nearby. Mario approached it, and explained you had to wall-jump back and forth within the shape as it moved until you got to where you wanted to go.

"You look like you're gonna use it..." Link started. "I dunno how, especially in that bulky shell. Why don't you let someone fit to do it do it?"

Mario gave Link a dark look…causing him to sweat-drop. Link started wall-jumping in the upside down "U", and it started moving. After seconds of this, he fell to the ground, gaining a nasty mark on the leg. Mario was too busy wall-jumping up the upside down "U" (since it came back) to snicker.

He had managed to reach the end on it, and slid down the thing before it took him back. Mario then used it as a platform to get to the next part, grabbing a Star Coin during the jump to the next part. Eventually, Kirby was able to carry Link up there by flying, and dropped him like a bomb once he made it there, sighing in relief.

"Mario! I'm doing this one! That last time was just a…um…fluke!" Link demanded, but Mario was already gone…and since it was a shorter one, it was much faster. By the time Kirby had carried Link up to the next part yet again, Mario had already closed the door.

. . .

Mario came out of a grey door that was impossible to open from the side he was now on. The grey door was somehow suspended in mid-air, so Mario fell to the solid ground below. Kirby came out of the door next, and he landed on Mario, thankfully not squashing him as he was pretty light. Link was last out, and fell on to Kirby, who was like a pillow to him.

"Be glad my mouth wasn't open." Kirby said, inhaling a Dry Bones nearby and turning into Dry Kirby. Mario bashed the red block next to them, and some spinning squares appeared. Mario ignored the squares for now and reached a lone spinning square. He hopped on that, and on to another area. He ran into the wall there, jumped, and wall-jumped off of it, barely scraping a floating Star Coin.

"I get the feeling there was a hidden block that would have caused some shapes to appear there so you could get the Star Coin, but your way works too." Dry Kirby shared.

Mario nodded, and got hit by a bone, which broke his shell. Mario took out his Fire Flower, and used it. Then he pummelled the Dry Bones who messed with him. Mario then led the group back to the place where they entered the room, and hopped across the squares, making it to the red pipe at the end, which they all entered.

. . .

All three of them came out of the pipe into a small room with just a big door which probably led to whoever was the boss of this place. They all entered it.

. . .

Once they did, there was a trap-door where the door led them, causing them to all fall into a battle room, with Bowser Jr. There was quicksand where a pit could be, and Bowser Jr appeared to have bombs.

"Aren't those YOUR bombs, Link?" Kirby asked.

"Kirby…"

"Oh, sorry. Go ahead."

"Aren't those MY bombs?" Link asked.

"Yeah, what of it?" Bowser Jr retorted.

"Give 'em back."

"You wanna fight for them?"

"Bring it."

"Ooh, I can't wait to bomb some Links!"

Link just sighed, and ran at Bowser Jr. The Koopa Kid threw some bombs at the trio, only blasting Link, and he decided to use the Fire Flower he had. Mario quickly pelted Bowser Jr with fireballs, and he fell to the floor.

There was silence.

Then Bowser Jr got right back up.

"Ha ha, you thought I was done! Well I caught you out!"

Bowser Jr threw some bombs at Kirby, and he smacked them away with his bone, right back into Bowser Jr, damaging him. Link ran up to the Koopa, and slashed him with the sword, causing him to make an ear-piercing yelp several times. Mario came out of nowhere, and ground-pounded him, and Bowser Jr wasn't going to take it. He jumped, tail-whipped Link, sending him into Mario, and they both lost their power-up.

Kirby snuck up to Bowser Jr, and clonked him on the head with his bone, then piled on to him while he was dazed. Mario and Link jumped on to him too, but Bowser Jr withdrew into his shell, causing everyone to back off.

He snickered, and got a kick to the face, sending him to the floor. Link tossed his boomerang at him, stunning the guy for a brief moment, allowing Mario to finish him off with a jump.

Bowser Jr fell to the floor, and didn't get up.

Well, actually he did.

"Quit getting up!" Link growled, charging at Junior again, and hacking at him with his sword. Kirby joined in, and pummelled him with his bones. Mario just stood back, and watched Bowser's son get beaten, and after a while, fell to the floor, and Link pinned him down.

"Ugh, fine. I'll let you have your bombs." He muttered, before shaking Link off, jumping out of the tower, creating an opening in the wall and leaving behind a Bomb Bag.

"Woo!" Link cheered, proudly taking his Bomb Bag. "Anyway, let's tail him."

Mario, Link and Kirby jumped out through the hole Bowser Jr made, and continued to make their way through the desert.

* * *

**That Bowser Jr fight was just too plain and repetitive to simply leave it like that…so I decided to make things interesting and mix it up.**

**By the way, how do you think Kirby walked across that gap in 2-Fortress? There's ACTUALLY a logical answer to it. ;D**


	8. Desert Blast

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 8: Desert Blast

**2-5**

"Red winged block! Red winged block!" Link wailed, jumping up to hit it, but missing on more than one occasion. It soon out of sight, and Link fell to the floor, saddened by the fact he could of gotten something cool out from that red winged block.

"There, there…" Dry Kirby patted the sad Link, and handed him the Fire Flower he had all this time, then replacing it with a Fire Flower he had obtained by smacking one of the blocks on the sand with his hammer.

Mario was walking ahead, and noticed a stack of blocks shake. Dry Kirby hopped on to it, and the stack of blocks shook him off. Mario jumped on the stack of blocks too, but it shook him off as well. Link came up to the stack of blocks and poked it, causing it to shake.

"It's definitely alive." Link confirmed, then hacking at it with his sword, but doing nothing. "Swords don't work…"

Mario tried ground-pounding the stack of blocks, but it jumped out of the way. Link hurled his Blazing Boomerang at it, but it didn't even scratch it, let alone burn it.

"What actually works against this jumping block guy?" Dry Kirby asked as Mario kept trying to Ground Pound it.

Mario: Probably a Ground Pound, if I could actually hit it with one.

Link then took a bomb, and bowled it at the jumping block guy when it landed somewhere. Mario was about to Ground Pound the thing, but saw the bomb and ran. The jumping block guy (who's really called a Blockhopper) jumped, but still took some damage from the explosion, now landing unsteadily after each jump.

"I love how we only started seeing this things once I got an effective item to use against them." Link said as he threw a bomb at the Blockhopper, who jumped and dodged it.

When it landed however, it wobbled, and Mario jumped above it, and did a Ground Pound on it, breaking through the brick block, and then breaking through the Blockhopper's weak spot…which was a yellow ? block. A Fire Flower came flying out, and Mario caught it, and used it on the spot.

"These enemies are actually somewhat challenging." Link admitted as they hopped over a short horizontal line of blocks on the sand and locked eyes with a Spiny. Dry Kirby approached it, and smashed it with his bone. The Spiny guarded against it, skidding back from the harsh blow. Then it withdrew into it, and zoomed at Dry Kirby, knocking him into the air.

Dry Kirby quickly recovered in mid-air, and chucked a bone at the Spiny the second it came out of its shell, knocking it on its back. Dry Kirby then jumped, and hammered the Spiny on its underbelly, defeating it.

There was a slightly taller Blockhopper nearby, and there was an even taller one on a block, along with a short, two-block tall one. Mario climbed on to the tallest one, and it jumped, trying to get Mario off of it, but ended up helping him grab a Star Coin high up in the air. It landed, and Mario quickly defeated it with a Ground Pound, nearly getting squished by the other two Blockhoppers.

Dry Kirby mauled the shortest one with some bones, and Link bombed the other one. Soon the Blockhoppers there were gone, and it was clear to proceed up some rocks, where another three-block high Blockhopper was waiting in ambush.

"Since when were these enemies smart?" Link asked as Mario intercepted it mid-jump, and took it down with a Ground Pound. "Shouldn't they have terrible AI or something?"

. . .

Somewhere, a wall was shattered into many pieces.

. . .

"Did anyone else hear something shatter?" Dry Kirby asked.

"Um…" Link sweat-dropped. "I-I-I…I definitely wasn't the cause of it."

Dry Kirby nodded, and they continued climbing up the rocks. A Blockhopper pounced Link, and stepped on his face. Link threw it off, and chucked a bomb at the Blockhopper, the blast radius scraping it and knocking the creature into a wall. Link jumped into the air, held his now normal sword high, and pushed his sword into the top of the Blockhopper, not doing anything.

Link sighed and pulled his sword out, and dropped a bomb on the Blockhopper, jumping away and watching it explode into a million pieces. Mario, Link and Dry Kirby grew tired of fighting off the Blockhoppers, and ran past the rest, leaving the rocky area and reaching some flat ground, with a ? block nearby. Mario bashed it, and snagged a Fire Flower, tossing it at an unsuspecting Link's head, and he got the power-up without even knowing it.

They eventually came across a jumping snake made out of fire, and stopped. After a long awkward silence, Dry Kirby yelled out a battle cry and charged at it, bone in hand. He got all close to it, and smacked it with his bone like it was a golf club, sending the Fire Snake out of sight. Dry Kirby laughed, only to get squashed by a Blockhopper, then losing his power-up.

"Ah…fudge." Kirby muttered, squeezing out of under the Blockhopper, and smashed it with his hammer, breaking it with a single blow. All three of them hopped over a little pit, and Kirby saw another Fire Snake.

Link chucked his boomerang at it, stunning the creature, and he ran up to it, slashing at it wildly with his flaming sword, only to make it bigger. The Fire Snake charged at Link, and burned him…and he lost his power-up too, snatching Kirby's Fire Flower to regain it.

"Hey!" Kirby growled. "Get your hands off my stuff, bub!"

Kirby took out his rage on the enlarged Fire Snake, and hammered it out of existence. Mario was walking along a grey block peacefully, and a Blockhopper suddenly hopped up out of nowhere in an attempt to dodge an attacking Link, catching Mario and the plumber was now on top of the Blockhopper. Link threw a bomb up there, and Mario jumped after the Blockhopper jumped, making it up to a group of three blocks. The bomb hit the left two blocks, the right one of the two revealing a P-Switch, which Mario hit, causing the coins nearby to become blocks, and vice versa.

Mario hopped on to some newly created platforms to the left, and soon made it to a Star Coin, which was snagged by a flying Kirby. Mario muttered something to himself as he fell back to the grey blocks. He, Link and Kirby simply continued, dodging any other Fire Snakes and Blockhoppers that attacked them, eventually coming across a pit which they all easily made it over. Then there was an up-down platform that took them up to meet eye to eye with a Boomerang Bro.

Kirby grabbed Mario and flew him out of the range of the Boomerang Bro, and they watched Link take him on. The Boomerang Bro chucked two boomerangs at him, and Link chucked just the one he had, which was of course on fire, and it trumped the two boomerangs, ploughing through them like they were air, and struck the Bro in the stomach.

"Ugh…"

Link then jumped towards him, went all up in his face, and slashed him with his sword, knocking the Boomerang Bro into the quicksand…and he didn't come out any time soon. Link tripped, and fell in too, though. Mario and Kirby came back to the ground, and went into the quicksand, managing to find a secret path to the right of the spot they entered. After climbing down some grey platforms, they found Link on a Blockhopper, who was walking along towards a Star Coin high up.

"Jump!" Link ordered, making the Blockhopper jump, and Link jumped at the peak of the Blockhopper's jump, and nabbed the Star Coin. "Good Blockhopper."

Link jumped off of the Blockhopper, and petted it before meeting up with Mario and Kirby again.

"Don't even ask." Link said as soon as Kirby opened his mouth, making him close it. They all scaled the grey blocks, and soon came out of the underground kind of area, back into the proper desert area. They climbed down some more rocks, and saw a Blockhopper hopping about before the flagpole.

Link paid it no mind, and simply used it as a foot stool to get 2000 Points.

Kirby didn't even bother trying to get the top, but still got 4000 Points.

Mario teamed up with the Blockhopper, and when it jumped, at the peak of its jump, Mario jumped and grabbed the top of the flagpole getting a 1-UP.

**2-6**

There was a red pipe. Mario and co jumped over several minor obstacles before making it to said red pipe.

. . .

"We're in the sky!" Kirby cheered.

Indeed they were. The red pipe spat them out on to a long platform that moved to the right somewhat slowly. Some blocks came into view, and Kirby whacked them with his hammer, one containing a Fire Flower, which Kirby used, becoming Fire Kirby.

Some Piranha Plants came flying into view on some short moving platforms of their own, but Kirby fried them with his Fire Breath. One even managed to land on the long platform the three heroes were on, and Kirby dashed into it, engulfed in fire, burning the Piranha Plant and making quick work of it.

Link checked a trio of blocks that the platform came across, and they were all containing coins. Just then, a Piranha Plant riding on a platform boarded the long platform, and Link hurled himself at it. The Piranha Plant quickly stretched itself at Link, managing to bite him in the arm.

"YOWCH!" he cried, losing his power-up and hacking at the Piranha Plant, and chopping off its neck, and kicking every part off the platform. "That's how it's done."

While Link was looking proud, the platform went under a pipe, and it was just high enough to bonk Link in the back of the head, giving him a headache.

"Ugh, that pipe smashed me in the head…" Link moaned, then realizing something and looking at Mario, who was sitting on the edge of the platform and looking at the sky. "Mario! You're a plumber! Go plumb up that pipe for smashing me in the head!"

Mario: Um…OK?

Mario approached the pipe with a plunger in hand, and when a Piranha Plant came out, he whacked it with said plunger. Mario looked at Link for confirmation.

"Uh…close enough."

"STAR COIN GET!" Kirby cheered, nabbing a Star Coin out of the air, then doing that famous victory dance of his.

Link wasn't' paying much attention to Kirby, because he was now raiding some blocks ahead for anything interesting…finding a Fire Flower. He reached out to grab it, but Mario took it before he could.

"Hey, that's mine!" Link shouted, watching Mario toss the Fire Flower up and down before finally using it.

Mario: The cost of making me plumb that pipe for you.

Just then, as Link frowned, a Piranha Plant boarded the platform.

"DIE!" Link yelled, attacking the creature the moment he heard the thud of it landing on the platform. Once Link had finished off the creature, he saw and slashed a block on a higher long platform, barely making the jump to the longer platform, and it started moving slightly behind the lower one.

After a while of uneventful riding, some Piranha Plants boarded the higher platform, and Link started fighting them off, somewhere during that collecting a Star Coin. Soon a giant Piranha Plant came, and tailed the lower platform for a bit. Kirby breathed some fire at the plant, and it was burnt to ash.

The platforms started to move faster, and this was a signal for them to all jump off. Mario landed on an up-down platform, and Kirby flew there. Once Link had defeated the two Piranha Plants, he back-flipped out of the way of a ball of fire spat out by a Piranha Plant on a very high platform, and then tossed a bomb at it…which was very effective in deposing of it, which also made it easier for Kirby to get a Star Coin.

After some steady plat-forming down several up-down platforms, Mario and friends reached land. There was a pipe leading back on track through the desert, but it was plugged with a cork, and a Piranha Plant was on said cork. Luckily, there was an air pump right next to the pipe.

Link figured out what he could do, and smiled at imagining the result. He told Mario to Ground Pound the air pump twice. Mario did that, and when he hit it with a Ground Pound the second time, the pipe couldn't take any more pressure and the cork was shot out, the Piranha Plant getting taken with it. Link fell on the floor in laughter at what happened. He couldn't even stop himself to make a cork pun.

Mario just threw him into the pipe, and jumped in, Kirby following. There was just three more up-down platforms, the second with a Piranha Plant on it, which was shot by Mario on sight. After they crossed them all, the flagpole was there, and Link lunged himself at it, falling down, and getting 100 Points.

Mario managed not to laugh, and jumped…netting a nice 2000 Points.

Kirby just flew up to the top, and got a 1-UP.

. . .

Luigi woke up. He was sliding down a slope of sand, and fell into an arena in some old ruins. A Pokey statue to the left of him rose out of the sand, blocking the way he entered. The impact of falling on to the sand knocked him out...

. . .

"Ooo…a castle." Kirby gaped at the large castle, and waddled inside.

"Kirby! Wait!" Link cried running inside after him.

Mario stared at the large castle, wandering what was even in there.

_Bowser fell in the lava. He couldn't have come back so quickly, if at all._

_Bowser Junior…there's just something about him ruling a castle that strikes me as odd._

_But what was in there, then?_

_There just couldn't be a castle without a boss. It doesn't make sense._

_Was there something or someone using Bowser as a puppet? Was whoever that could be REALLY calling the shots?_

_I'm probably just over-thinking this, but really, WHO could be in there?_

Mario shook his head, cleared his mind, and ran in through the doors without a second thought.

* * *

**That last part. Mario's thoughts. The very things I thought during my first run of the game. **


	9. Mother Pokey

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 9: Mother Pokey

"Huh? What happened?" Luigi thought, his eyes flickering open. _"_Wait, is that Bowser Jr?_"_

Luigi was in some kind of old ruins. There were two Pokey statues blocking the two ways out.

Luigi sat up, and saw it was indeed Bowser Jr, and he appeared to be holding something.

"Papa…" he mumbled, holding one of his dad's scales that he managed to salvage from the battle in Bowser's Castle. Luigi slowly snuck up on him, and peeked over his shoulder. He gasped.

"YOU!" the Koopa Kid exclaimed, startled. "YOUR BROTHER AND HIS FRIEND DROPPED MY PAPA IN LAVA!"

"WAH!" Luigi cried, diving out of the way of a shell thrown at him. "They did what?"

"They dropped King Dad in lava!"

"Doesn't that happen often enough to the point you get used to it?"

"Yes…" he whispered, suddenly quiet. "…but I saw it. I saw it happen. I can't even find his body...so I don't even know what happened to him after that..."

. . .

_Bowser Jr heard something, dropped the sword and jumped off to the right, that side being blocked by iron blocks too, although there was a small hole in one of the lower blocks._

. . .

"That hole…I looked through it."

. . .

_His hands were getting damaged slightly every second he held the attack back, and managed to throw the spinning Link backwards over his head, into the wall, and he took major damage. Mario ran for the Fire Flower Link dropped, and tossed it over Bowser's head, and Link was powered up. Link finally slipped off the wall and landed on a switch._

_. . ._

"I was watching. Nobody knew until one point, but I was watching.

. . .

_He roared in pain as he rose from the lava. He then sank back in. Bowser rose once again, this time as a skeleton…who Mario decided to call Dry Bowser. Dry Bowser roared, catching something at the corner of his eye. He never looked sadder than he did once he knew who was watching._

. . .

"He was staring at me. You saw him look sad as he burned in the lava, didn't you?! He was looking at me looking through the hole. That was why he was sad…because I saw it happen."

Luigi looked glanced at the ground, and kicked the dirt. He had no idea what to say about that.

"So you know what I'm gonna do?"

Luigi shook his head.

"I'M GONNA DEFEAT YOU AS REVENGE!" Bowser Jr growled, taking out a Green Shell, and kicking it at Luigi.

"Wah!"

Luigi ran on the spot, and as soon as he thought it was time to jump…he jumped, and landed on the shell, stopping it and bouncing off of it. He landed before it, and gave it a good kick, straight at Junior. The Green Shell smashed him in the face, knocking the guy over, exposing his underbelly.

Luigi jumped into the air above Bowser Jr, and fluttered to aim his jump perfectly. He landed on the Koopa Kid's underbelly, causing him to cry out in pain.

He got up, and growled, giving Luigi a hard stare.

This time, he took out a Red Shell, and tossed it at Luigi. The Red Shell locked on to him, and when Luigi was about to jump on it, the shell chased after him, even when he dodged it. He ran in circles, getting tailed by the shell. Luigi jumped, and landed on the shell…but that didn't stop it. He fell to the floor, and spat the sand out of his mouth.

"Red Shells don't get stopped that easily! You should know that by Mario Kart!" Junior cackled.

Luigi ran towards him, and the Koopa sweat-dropped. The plumber jumped over Junior, and the Red Shell kept chasing him on ground. Bowser Jr was in the way, so the Red Shell was forced to go through him…but when it smashed into his face, it was destroyed, and sent him stuttering backwards.

"Returned to sender!" Luigi cheered.

Bowser Jr wiped the sweat from his forehead, and jumped at Luigi, who dived out of the way. He wasn't stopping there, though! He jumped again, and Luigi barely had time to lunge out of the way. Then he changed tactics, and shot some fire at him. Luigi wailed, and got up, jumped over the fire blast, and attempting to land on him…but missed as Junior dived out of the way just like he did.

Luigi darted at him once again, and jumped. Junior spat some more blasts of fire at Luigi, but he went over them, and bounced off his head. Bowser Jr shook his head, and got even more serious. He ran at Luigi again, and jumped into the air, and spun towards the ground. Luigi hopped out of the way, and when Junior landed, he created a small shockwave that spread towards the Pokey statues. The Pokey statues charged up with electricity, and created a ball of the stuff above them.

Both statues shot their electro balls at the same time, and they hit the ground, creating some wild sparks that spread across the battlefield. Luigi barely managed to jump over them. The wild sparks hit and stunned Bowser Jr, and he was wide open to an attack. Luigi jumped, flipped, and gave him a good Ground Pound.

Bowser Jr fell to the floor in defeat. Luigi made a pose, but then realized Bowser Jr was getting up again. Luigi ran to him, but was jumped over and he hit the right Pokey statue, falling into the sand feet first and getting stuck in the sand, unable to stop Bowser Jr.

"I don't care if you won that fight or not…I can still do what I needed to do here while you're stuck!"

"Which was…?"

"…none of your business!" Junior hissed as a Paragoomba flew into the scene out of nowhere.

"Your Spoiltness, Mario, the elf and a pink puffball have been seen entering the castle! We need to hurry back in time to stop them from getting the Princess!" the Paragoomba reported. "Kamek is on his way to pick you up!"

"Good, now go back and protect the castle!"

The Paragoomba nodded, and flew off through the secret skyward passage it entered through.

"I need to finish this fast…" Bowser Jr said to himself, before raising his hands and calling something out. "Mummipokey! Come to me!"

Thunder boomed outside, and suddenly the sand started to shake. The Mummy version of a Pokey rose out of the ground, and stared at Junior. It waited for orders. Luigi was utterly terrified.

"Mummipokey! Come with me…to the castle!" Bowser Jr ordered. Mummipokey sank back into the sand, and didn't come back out. "Huh, looks like that worked."

"You thought that wouldn't?" Luigi asked.

"Obviously." Bowser Jr said like it was simply common sense. "The most powerful Pokey known in the Mushroom Kingdom isn't very likely to listen to someone like me…"

Junior broke down the right statue. He could see Kamek flying into the ruins and towards him on his broomstick in the distance. He hurried to where Mummipokey last was, and searched the sand, finding one of the thorns that used to be on her. He put it in his pocket, and ran towards Kamek, who picked him up, and the duo flew out of the ruins, towards the castle.

"Why is he collecting those items…?" Luigi thought as he tried to get out of the sand. "One of Bowser's scales…one of Mummipokey's thorns…I don't get it."

Luigi eventually managed to get out of the sand, then ran after Kamek and Junior out of the ruins.

. . .

**2-Castle**

As soon as Mario entered and walked four meters, Link dived into him, out of the way of a giant spiked ball.

"G-G-Giant spiked ball!" Link cried, pointing at Kirby being chased by a giant spiked ball. He came up on a wall, and flew up over it, into safety. The ball bounced off the wall, and fell into a pit. They all met up where Kirby was.

Mario: Calling it now, this place is going to have a ton of spiked balls.

"Hah, yeah right. There's no way they could have more of those evil balls, and that big one nearly killed me!" Link panted, exhausted from running…although he didn't do too much of that anyway, he was just tired for no reason.

"Nah, it wasn't that close. I wouldn't have even called that tense." Kirby said.

Hopping over a tiny pit, a small spiked ball came rolling down, Mario jumping over it with ease.

Mario: Piece of cake.

Link barely managed to hop over the ball without getting spiked. "So you're saying you're some kind of pro at this?"

Mario: Maybe. I've done stuff like this for years...except they were barrels instead of spike balls of doom.

"Poyo, there's a giant ball rolling at you guys." Kirby said, flying over it without a care in the world. Mario hopped over the ball, hardly breaking a sweat. Link nearly got steamrolled by the ball, but jumped over it in time.

"Even outside of Volleyball, I still nearly get spiked…" Link moaned.

As Mario and Link hopped over a third, Kirby (who, if you've forgotten, still is Fire Kirby) raided a block for its Fire Flower while flying. They all reached a little a little hole in the ground with a spiked ball rolling back and forth in it. While Link begged Kirby to just carry him over, Mario hopped across the hole by using the blocks to stay above the ball. Kirby soon just purposely made himself lose his Fire power-up, and inhaled the swordsman.

. . .

Kirby soon crossed the hole, and spat Link out, only keeping his sword in his mouth, and swallowed it, gaining the Sword power-up. Kirby then burped out Link's actual sword.

"Yuck…it's all slimy." Link shuddered as he grabbed his sword, and after a good cleaning, his sword was as good as new. "I'm actually glad Zelda forced me to bring all these cleaning supplies, otherwise I'd have some nasty sword."

Mario: Zelda?

"You'll meet her eventually, but for now, let's just say she's a friend of mine from my world." Link answered quickly, then swinging on a rope like Tarzan, howling. He flung off the rope, over a very large spiked ball, and on to safe ground once again. He hopped while at a high speed over a little pit, and skidded to a stop below some blocks, one of them showing a Fire Flower after Link checked them all, climbing up the blocks and resting there as a spiked ball rolled under.

Mario hopped over that one, Kirby too. Then they all dashed, and saw a spiked ball coming. Mario dived into a little hole for safety, and Kirby flew up to the low ceiling. Link panicked, and grabbed Kirby's legs, hoping he wouldn't get spiked, and didn't. This was repeated once more, and then the third time, there was a group of horizontal blocks in the middle of a tight area. A spiked ball was coming, and they all jumped on to the blocks, the ball completely missing them.

Kirby then felt his stomach rumble, and he flew up at the first chance he got, and darted towards a spiked ball. He jumped over it, bonking his head on the ceiling, and slipped through a little slot in the floor, finding a pretty closed in area with a Star Coin. He waddled back to the others with his Star Coin.

Mario gave him a thumbs-up while Link looked slightly jealous, but was still applauding him. Either way, they strolled onwards, not encountering any spiked balls till they reached a pit. A spiked ball rolled in, and everyone made a mad dash for the door they noticed at the top of some ledges…and entered it.

. . .

"Boss time?" Kirby asked, sword ready to be used.

Mario looked about, tasting the air as he did. It didn't seem tense, so he shook his head. They were now outside, probably in the backyard of the castle, which seemed more like just the plain old desert they had been in recently.

Just then, a Bullet Bill nearly smashed Link in the face if it wasn't for Sword Kirby dropping his Sword power-up (which he barely used), and smacking it away with his hammer.

"Hey, who's calling the shots?" Link chuckled.

Mario just made a blank face at Link, not even getting the joke. Kirby didn't either, but laughed just for the sake of laughing…if that even makes sense, but Kirby didn't care if it did or not. He was just happy.

Mario quickly climbed over the Bullet Blaster, ducked under a couple of Bullet Bills shot at him by other Blasters, and bounced off of a Bullet Bill to grab a Star Coin in a little crevice. Link and Kirby caught up, and they all had to duck under a Bullet Bill…then two, and finally one more before Kirby could hammer a Bullet Blaster into the ground so he could easily hit the P-Switch behind it.

The sand they were standing on sunk a bit, and they could now carry on by going back to where they were ducking under Bullet Bills and slid down the newly created slope, hopped over the spike ball that used to be stuck in the sand, and up the newly created hill. They all did just that, and at the top of the newly created hill, there was a block.

"Air raid!" Kirby yelled, air-raiding the block, and snatching the Fire Flower from it. He put it away.

Link made a pretty decent Tarzan cry as he swung across the rope just ahead of them, and reached a pair of blocks. One of them had a Mini Mushroom, and unfortunately touched Link, instantly turning him very small.

"Doctor! Doctor! I think I'm shrinking!" Link cried out.

Mario swung on over to Link.

Mario: I'm actually a doctor as well as a plumber, you know.

Link cracked up in laughter as Mario picked him up, and put him in his hat. He carried past a massive spike ball, and over a pair up a short hill of rocks. He saw a little passage Link could probably fit through, and took him out. He bowled him through, and watched him hit a block making a Mushroom come out and touch him, turning him back to normal.

There was also a Star Coin there, and Link snagged it, then went through a ledge that could only be passable from below, meeting up with Mario again.

"Hey, where's Kirby?"

"Poyo, there's a switch here." Kirby said, ahead of them and at a dead end.

Mario and Link jumped over the spike ball, and as they darted towards the pink puffball, he hit the switch, causing the sand to sink and reveal a door at the lowest point of the sinking. This also caused a spike ball to start rolling back and forth between the slopes. Mario and Link were taken right to the boss door, and entered it. Kirby flew down there, and joined them. Inside, there was another trapdoor, which Mario fell for.

"See you next fall!" Link chuckled, before jumping in too, and passing the plumber during the descent. Kirby jumped into the trapdoor like Link, but instead because it looked fun.

. . .

Kirby landed on Mario, and Mario had landed on Link. Link threw off Mario, then threw off Kirby, the duo landing in the sand. Mario spat the sand out of his mouth. Kirby swallowed it.

"Hmm…too dry." Kirby criticised. Mario sighed. Link jumped on to the sand too, and began to walk with them once they got up.

"Well, looks like we'll get to find out who's the boss of this place." Link said. "Any guesses before we find out?"

"Bowser!" Kirby yelled out.

"Uh…Kirby, me and Mario kinda dropped him in lava in the previous world."

"Ooo, that's graphic." Kirby winced. "By the way, how was I supposed to know that?"

Link shrugged, and they all realized they entered the boss' room when the way back was blocked off. Bowser Jr was there.

"Oh, so now I get to deal with the other Mario Brother!" He laughed.

Mario: Other? You saw LUIGI?!

"Heh. I may have, or I may not have." Bowser Jr said, taunting him.

Link now had an evil grin, and tossed a bomb at Junior. The Koopa Kid held up a very familiar blue shield to Link, and he shield-bashed the bomb back at Link. He held up Kirby, and the puffball swallowed it, gaining the Bomb ability.

"Don't make me use this!" Link threatened, holding up Kirby in front of him.

"Poyo!"

Bowser Jr sweat-dropped. Link then came across a shocking realization.

"Wait…that's MY shield! How'd you have all my stuff?"

"I have my ways. Now, Mummipokey will deal with you personally." He then prepared to jump into the next room. "Smell ya later!"

"Oh, so you're pulling quotes out of your shell, huh?" Kirby said.

Link started to run after him, but then the sand started to shake, and a giant Mummy version of a Pokey popped out of the ground, the force of it poking out sending Link into a heavy skid back to Mario and Kirby.

"So this is the boss, huh? Bowser must still be alive, then!" Kirby deduced. "And he probably has more powerful bosses like this guy around!"

"How'd you know he's powerful? He could be a weakling." Link asked, then getting hit by a rock spat out by Mummipokey and losing his Mushroom power, and ended up eating Kirby's Fire Flower. "I had to open my mouth, didn't I?"

Mario: He called it Mummipokey. It's obviously a she. Males can't be called mummies.

"He makes a good point." Kirby agreed.

"Why are we even talking about whether this boss is male or female? Let's just beat her up!" Link shouted, pulling out his sword and charging at Mummipokey and she went back into the ground, causing Link to completely miss and fall to the ground. Mummipokey popped out behind him, and spat another rock at Link, which Mario stopped with a charged up fireball.

As Mario and Mummipokey continued shooting projectiles at each other, Kirby helped Link up.

"I have to admit…she's definitely a fighter." Link admitted. Kirby nodded in agreement.

Mario had to get up close and personal with Mummipokey since they were going nowhere with the whole projectile thing, so he jumped up, and attempted to punch her, but she sunk back into the ground, and Mario fell to the floor.

Mummipokey popped out of the ground right in front of Link, and he jumped into the air, and gave her a spin attack…to the face, sending her right into the wall, and she sank back into the ground again.

She popped up near the left wall, and Link tossed a bomb at her, which she whacked back at him with her head. Mummipokey then spat a rock at Kirby, and he hammered it back. Mummipokey returned it, and spat two rocks at him. Kirby returned the first one, and it hit the second one, destroying each other. He then smashed the third one back and tossed a bomb at her too for good measure, and they bonked Mummipokey in the head, causing her to sink back into the ground in pain.

Kirby did his little victory dance, and took a nap.

There was silence.

"Is she finished already?" Link asked because they only hit her twice…well, thrice.

That question was replied with Mummipokey bursting out of the sand again, spitting out rocks like a machine gun spat out bullets. Mario ran around wildly, unsure of what spots were safe. Link held up his sword, attempting to use it as a shield to block any rocks.

One of the rocks hit Kirby, causing him to lose his Bomb power-up, but importantly, making him wake up. The puffball looked vexed. Mario stopped running. Link lowered his sword. Kirby's eyes flamed with rage. He suddenly gained the Crash power-up from his rage, and that was when Link started to panic.

Mario: What's he doing…?

"He's gonna destroy everything! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!" Link cried like a little girl.

Mario and Link ran into the corner that had the most distance between them and Kirby, and sat there. Mario took out some popcorn, and munched it, intently watching Kirby about to unleash his rage.

"I'm shocked you're not worried for you life."

Mario: I have at least 10 1-UPs on me, why should I worry?

Link instantly looked calm again, and he started eating from Mario's popcorn. They both watched. Kirby bounced around everywhere in an explosive glow, striking Mummipokey many, many, many times. There were fireworks every few times he hit her, and stopped in the middle of the room.

"POYO!"

He back-flipped in mid-air, causing an awesome explosion that didn't make it to Mario and Link. Mummipokey looked like she was about to explode, but fell over and landed in the sand, body completely exposed. She then started glowing, and exploded in a white flash, leaving behind a key.

Kirby mumbled something incoherently, and picked up the key, posing and holding it in the air. Mario and Link jumped beside him, and posed too. Once they finished posing, the door Junior left through opened, and they ran through it to see Peach and Bowser Jr.

Peach gasped to see Mario had made it to her again with what he thought were his friends. She tried to run to their side, but Bowser Jr had a fierce grip.

"You're not taking my mama away again!" Bowser Jr growled at Mario, Link and the now sleeping Kirby.

"Mama?" Link kept in a laugh, and looked at Mario for an explanation.

Mario: It's a long story…

Link then fell on the floor in laughter.

"He thinks Peach is his mama!" Link chuckled, rolling about. Bowser Jr growled, and spat a small fireball at Link, setting him on fire. He was now rolling around on the ground in laughter and to put out his fire. Junior chuckled at this, and ran off, Peach in tow. Mario waited for Link to get rid of the fire, and watched him lose his power-up. He woke Kirby up, but more gently than the last time he was woken up.

Mario pointed at the fleeing Bowser Jr. Link and Kirby nodded, and they all chased after him, out of the desert, and towards a beach.

* * *

**All I can say without spoiling anything is that whole Luigi thing at the start comes completely into play much, much later…people who've played (or at least watched) the actual game may be able to figure it out. It also makes these boss chapters longer...although they might not be in only boss chapters.**


	10. Beach Hogging

**Eh, since it's a short one, I thought I may as well post this along with Sonic Challenges Mario to a Grand Prix.**

**Definitely my favorite chapter of this story so far...but my least favorite to edit. :/**

* * *

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 10: Beach Hogging

_Ugh, why did I have to wind up here, of all places? Why not in the grasslands? Why not in a desert? Why not in a forest? Why not in some snowy land? Why not on a mountain? Why not in the clouds? Why not even near a volcano?_

_The worst part is, right behind me, is a whole load of sea. Not the way I want to leave this place._

_Ah, well, the sooner I stop complaining to myself, the sooner I can focus on getting out of this dreadful area._

_Huh, there's a cutter there. That looks sorta like Kirby's…maybe I should hold on to it._

Sonic picked up the cutter, jumped off the hill he was on, and boosted towards the beach, hoping he could escape this terrible place as soon as possible.

**3-1**

There was a pipe, which apparently headed into the water. Sonic hopped into the pipe.

. . .

_I regret ever thinking this pipe could be helpful._

Sonic was now underwater. He tried going back up the pipe, but the currents swept him away before he could get near the pipe again. He was swept pass several schools of Cheep Cheep, and he soon regained control as he passed through a red ring. He started running across the bottom, and decided to try jumping. He jumped...and it seemed like a normal jump. That seemed to work as he went under a school of Cheep Cheep, collecting three Red Coins. Then he went over another school, collecting two more Red Coins, and followed the curving path of three red coins, nabbing them all. A Fire Flower popped out of nowhere above his head.

He weakly swam up to it, and put the Fire Flower away. He soon came across a roulette block, and it spat out a Star.

"Hmm…I should probably grab that." Sonic thought as he watched it bounce away. The second he touched it, he felt a power rush through him…an uplifting one too, and the next thing he knew, he was in his super form.

"This is awesome!" Super Sonic cheered, blasting through everything, even into a Cheep Chomp's mouth. It made a grim face as Super Sonic struck every part of the Cheep Chomp's insides. He rocketed out through the exit he made, and into a green pipe in between two currents that didn't even effect him.

. . .

Super Sonic boosted through the secret area, full of Cheep Cheep and coins in bubbles, collecting the coins, and defeating the Cheep Cheep. There was a Star Coin at the end.

"Looks pretty useful to me, so I may as well take it." Sonic thought as he nabbed it and exited through the pipe at the end.

Super Sonic suddenly felt the uplifting power about to leave his body as he flew (or swam, I'm not really sure which he's actually doing) through some currents coming out of a pair of pipes, and snagged a Star Coin.

Then everything stopped.

_Did…something happen?_

Then everything went black.

_What's happening?_

The uplifting power separated from Super Sonic, taking the form of a bright light, which was the only thing he could see now. Super Sonic lost his yellow glow, and reverted back to the cobalt-blue self he was known for.

The bright light moved further away from me, slowly taking the form of a Star again. It then broke into several pieces, each flying out of sight.

And everything was back...and started moving again.

_That felt great. That power…it was so…energizing._

Even though he was underwater, Sonic couldn't help but grin, only to lose that grin when he noticed another Cheep Chomp was swimming towards him, about to have him as its dinner. Sonic tried to Spin Dash, but he ended up doing it with a water-coating, and he smashed into the face of the Cheep Chomp, regaining that lost grin and watching the Cheep Chomp smash through some brick blocks, hitting a P-Switch too.

The brick blocks turned into coins, and vice versa. Sonic saw a Star Coin in the open, and did an Aqua Dash towards it. He continued to Aqua Dash through everything until he went through a red ring, where he stopped to see 8 red coins.

_I really didn't feel like spending more time underwater just to collect some coins…and it was pretty much a no-brainer._

Sonic just ignored the coins, and entered a pipe further along the water.

. . .

"LAND!" Sonic cried, diving towards the sweet ground. There was a flagpole. Sonic jumped up back on to the pipe, being careful not to go back in it, and hopped up to some blocks. He used those blocks as the height he needed to lunge for the top.

Sonic got a 1-UP.

The hedgehog gladly ran along further down the shore.

**3-A**

Sonic hopped to a small spot of land in the middle of the water, and bounced on to a floating barrel up ahead, raiding a lone block nearby for its Fire Flower.

"Uh…I'd rather not use that." Sonic said, throwing it into the water and bouncing off a Skeeter and using it to land on another a while away, and used THAT one to get to land again. He Homing Attacked a Koopa, sending it into a spin, and boosted through it, sending it flying out of sight.

Sonic did an Action Chain on a pair of Skeeters across some water, landing on another spot of land. He jumped to a higher and longer stretch of land, jumped in front of some Koopas, and started charging up a Spin Dash.

"Get ready…" Sonic readied himself by spinning on the spot, energy spiralling into him. The Koopa Troopas paid him no mind, and continued to walk around aimlessly.

_OK, just a little more, and it'll be ready._

"GO!" Sonic then burst into speed, bowling through the Koopa Troopas, landing on the surface of the water and going across it. A small Ferris Wheel took him out of the water, and it gave him enough height to continue going, rolling down a couple of ledges and coming to an abrupt stop when he saw the water before him, with two Skeeters swimming back and forth.

_Looks like it's time for an Action Chain!_

Sonic Homing Attacked the first Skeeter, and it gave him that boost he needed to reach a suitable range to Homing Attack the second Skeeter, using the air he gained from attacking it to barely make it on to the edge of some high land. Sonic jumped over a Koopa Troopa and some blocks from there, and fell into the water.

Sonic happened to fall in just in time witness a Skeeter drop a bomb that broke through several blocks. The Skeeter repeated that above Sonic, who looked up to see a hole on its underside enlarge itself, and saw a bomb come out. He obviously lunged out of the way towards the wall and clinging on to it to avoid falling any deeper…but shuddered once he did now that he saw it. It did that several times, and soon there was nothing but the Star Coin that used to be caged in by blocks, the Skeeter, and Sonic.

_Ugh…that looked disgusting._

Sonic bounded off the remaining blocks to the surface, taking the Star Coin on the way, and gave the Skeeter a good kick to the leg, defeating it on the spot. Sonic fell back into the water, and swam to a block, which let out a Mini Mushroom once it felt a kick. This startled Sonic, and the Mini Mushroom turned him into Mini Sonic, who floated to the top of the water.

_Well, it's a relief I won't have to cling to walls for dear life as much._

Sonic jumped on to a Koopa on a barrel, and used it as a spring to snag a Star Coin bigger than him, and landed on a Koopa on a spot of land, using him to land before a pipe without having to even go near the water.

"Heh, thanks for the help, guys!" Sonic entered the pipe.

"Hey, Koopaul? Did you feel something jump on your head?" the Koopa closer to the pipe asked.

"Yeah, Koopalmer. I think it was a blue fly or something-wait, where'd that Star Coin go?!"

"Oh no, we were supposed to be guarding that as well...Bowser's gonna scorch us for that. Let's just hope that was a fly and not Mario..."

. . .

Sonic started to run, but tripped. Sonic caught a glimpse a knot of grass in the ground as he

_Why do I keep falling into this water…it's not like it's hard to stay out of it. _

Sonic sank to the bottom as he fell forward, landing on a pipe blocked by blocks. A Skeeter on the surface of the water swam to the spot above it, and bombed the blocks, Sonic getting out of the way before he was bombed, and watched the pipe get unblocked, and entered it.

. . .

He was now in a little room with Micro Goombas walking about. Sonic swam to a block, and bashed it with all his might, managing to make a Mushroom come out of the block, and he went around the dotted blocks, and used the Mushroom, becoming big again. Sonic swatted the Micro Goombas out of his face, and swam up to the large pipe, entering it.

. . .

Sonic came out of the pipe at the other end, leaped out of the water and used a Skeeter to get back up to a high piece of land, near the mini pipe he entered earlier. Sonic jumped through the pipe now above his head.

. . .

Sonic was now on beach grounds, and saw a Star Coin around some coins high in the air. The hedgehog picked up speed, ran across the water, and when he was just before the Star Coin, he jumped, rocketing into the air and catching the Star Coin in mid-air, landing on the other side of the beach and entering the pipe at the end.

. . .

Sonic came out of the pipe, landing on another high piece of land before several Ferris Wheels. Sonic jumped from Ferris Wheel to Ferris Wheel, and used a Paratroopa to get to land again, right in front of a pipe. He obviously entered it.

. . .

Sonic jumped on to some Donut Blocks at the other end, and on to some higher Donut Blocks, and finally lunged at the flagpole, netting a lovely 4000 Points.

. . .

Sonic continued to run across the beach, until he saw the some people who were red, green and pink.

_Hey…is that Mario, Link and Kirby? Maybe this won't be so bad, after all!_

Sonic ran towards them, glad to finally have found the trio.

. . .

"What's that blue thing blazing towards us?" Kirby asked, pointing at the blue thing blazing across the beach towards them.

"Hey, that might be Sonic!" Link realized.

Mario: That's obviously Sonic…who else runs that fast…and is blue?

Link shrugged.

"C'mon, let's go see Sonic!" Kirby cheered.

"Uh…I'm right here." Sonic said, right behind Kirby. "You really do underestimate my speed sometimes…"

* * *

**Although I like the way this chapter is pretty different and how you probably wouldn't have seen it coming, something about it bugs me. Probably the short length or something, but eh, I can live with it for now. If it becomes something I'm itching to fix, I'll go through this story quite a while after it's finished to fix it up a bit.**


	11. Shield Your Eyes

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 11: Shield Your Eyes

**3-2**

"Wow, so that's what's been happening to you guys?"

"Poyo, have you seen my Final Cutter? I lost it a while back." Kirby asked.

"You mean this?" Sonic pulled out a blue cutter. "I found this where I landed. I figured it was yours."

Kirby gave a nod of thanks, and snatched the cutter quite quickly.

"Seriously, hurry up guys…Mario's already getting far ahead of us." Link moaned, pointing Mario, who had already claimed a Fire Flower from a block, storing it in his overalls and had jumped on to a piece of land.

Mario: Does anyone see that Tower down there?

By the way, they were in the sky again, kinda like 1-3. Sonic back-flipped off the long, red mushroom he was using as a platform, over the piece of land Mario was on a moment ago, and on to another long, red mushroom which could be used as a platform. He watched Mario aim a fireball at a Koopa, and fired it, striking it in the leg, and setting that body part on fire.

"MY LEG! MY LEG…" the Koopa wailed, falling off the mushroom.

"Ha! Looks like that Koopa Troopa was on his last legs…" Link chuckled, Kirby joining in. Mario and Sonic exchanged blank faces.

Sonic jumped over Mario's head, homing attacked the Goomba ahead, and used that height to make it to a group of Goombas walking around on the mushroom, performing an Action Chain on the next five Goombas, landing on normal land again without having to even touch that last mushroom.

Mario jumped to where Sonic was, and back-flipped on to a group of three blocks. Sonic ran towards a wall, wall-jumped off of it on impact, and landed on the group of three blocks too. They both jumped to the higher part of the normal piece of land, which was over the wall, and jumped on to the left part of a scale.

Link jumped in out of nowhere, bounced of Mario's head, (and in doing so caused the left part of the scale to drop even faster), and landed on the right part of the scale, slowing down the lowering of the left part.

"I guess the speed of that thing falling wasn't up to scale!" Link cracked up, falling off the scale and barely landing on a piece of land. Kirby, who was flying overhead, didn't get the joke, and therefore didn't find it funny. Mario and Sonic couldn't find the joke in what Link said either, and hopped to where he was, passing him.

Sonic jumped over a very suspicious yellow pipe, and kicked some Goombas out of the way, smashing the two blocks they were guarding and causing a Fire Flower to pop out of one. Sonic ignored it, and Link nabbed it instead.

"How come you don't want to use the Fire Flower, anyway?" Link asked while he gained his upgraded weapons again.

"I don't even know…it just…doesn't feel right for me to use one yet." Sonic answered, watching Mario and Kirby enter the suspicious yellow pipe he passed up a moment ago.

. . .

Mario started sliding down the edge of a tilting mushroom, and if it wasn't for Kirby who grabbed him, he may have fallen off. Kirby carried Mario into the air, over all the long, tilting, red mushrooms.

"Poyo, there's a Star Coin up there." Kirby pointed at the Star Coin in the air, and he flew towards it. He told Mario to grab it, and the plumber nodded, then swiped it out of the sky, and Kirby took them through the green pipe at the end.

. . .

"Hey, guys." Sonic welcomed once Mario and Kirby came out of the green pipe near some scales. "Watch this!"

Sonic jumped on to the green pipe, then on to the left part of the first scale. As soon as it had just gotten slightly lower than the right part, he hopped on to that part, and quickly made his way on to the left part of the second scale, gently walking to the edge of the left part, and hopped on to the right part of the second scale. Because both sides of the second scale had very little string, they were pretty high up and you could barely stand on one before you broke it. Sonic bounded off the right part of the second scale, and landed on a logic-defying piece of land that was floating alone high up in the air, with a Star Coin on it. Sonic swiped the Star Coin, and jumped to a lower piece of land below, where he met up with Mario, Link and Kirby.

They all jumped on to a moving mushroom, and it took them below a green, yellow and red pipe, each next to each other, and the green one seemed to not be blocked. Kirby noticed this, inhaled Mario and Sonic, and picked up Link, and flew up there, into the green pipe.

. . .

They were now in a bonus room, with a spinning propeller as the main attraction. Kirby spat out Mario and Sonic, and dropped Link into the pile.

"How'd you know this pipe would take us up into a secret area?" Link asked.

"Instinct." Kirby answered as he hammered a P-Switch, causing a ton of blue coins to appear in the sky. Link quickly collected them all with time to spare with the help of his Blazing Boomerang and the spinning propeller. Once he had landed, they all piled into the green pipe to the right, seeing as the left one didn't work anymore.

. . .

Mario landed on a piece of land.

Sonic landed on Mario.

Kirby landed on Sonic.

Link landed on Kirby.

Kirby threw Link on to a tilting mushroom.

Sonic threw Kirby into the air.

Mario threw Sonic off of him.

Kirby started to fly towards a red flagpole he saw in the distance. Link saw it too, and started jumping from mushroom to mushroom to get to it. Mario and Sonic noticed as well, and did the same as Link.

Mario was the first one to get to the flagpole, getting a 1-UP. Sonic was next, and got a 1-UP too. Kirby simply plopped himself on Sonic's head, getting a 1-UP just like the last two. Link was the last one to get to the flagpole, and got a measly 2000 Points compared to the other three.

Link grumbled to himself as they slid down the flagpole, and realized they went the wrong way.

"Uh…I think we took a wrong turn." Sonic said after an awkward silence.

"Looks like it's time for some back-tracking…"

**3-2**

Soon they were on that moving mushroom again. This time, they all ignored the green pipe, and rode it to the end, jumping from each scale part to another. None of them managed to make it through the red ring that was pretty easy to access though, as it was above the left part of the first scale. After a good deal of jumping from scale to scale, they soon reached land again, and approaching another mushroom that would move when landed on.

Mario stepped on it. Link and Kirby quickly rushed on to the mushroom too, and Sonic was on the mushroom for years, or so he said. Sonic had moved on to the mushroom so quickly, it didn't even get mentioned in the story as it actually happened, and instead, was added after the events, not during.

"Mario, you're on Paratroopa Duty. Shoot down any Paratroopa who looks at you funny with fireballs while we're on this." Link ordered. "Sonic, you're on Lookout Duty. If you see any Paratroopas, tell Mario, or give it a kick to the face. More preferably the latter. And finally, Kirby, you're on Sleeping Duty. I want you to sleep there and not eat anything. Now that you all have your jobs, let's get to it!"

"Uh…we've already reached the end of the ride."

"Oh. Well then, good job, men!"

After several face to palm connections, they lunged at the black flagpole in their own different ways.

Mario jumped on to a group of blocks and used them to get 8000 Points.

Sonic homing-attacked Link when he jumped and used him as a boost to get the 1-UP.

Link was homing-attacked and fell into the pole at the bottom, only getting 100 Points.

Kirby simply flew to the top, getting a 1-UP.

The group slid down the flagpole, and walked towards the Tower, which they actually took the right route to, and managed to enter it at the same time.

"You know, there's a perfect solution to keep us out of these Towers/Fortresses and Castles." Kirby realized.

"What?" Sonic asked.

Mario: Locking the door?

"Hey!" Kirby yelled. "I was going to say that!"

**3-Fortress**

There were three pipes…and a red winged block was near the rightmost one.

"Must! Grab! Block!" Link said as he darted towards it…only for it to go through the wall as he made his last-ditch attempt to strike it. Link fell to the floor in defeat.

Mario: O.o

"The heck?" Sonic said, dumbfounded by the winged block going through the wall. "Does that happen all the time in your world?"

Mario: I'm not even sure…I definitely wasn't aware of it, though.

"MOVING ON…" Kirby said abruptly, changing the subject. "So, three pipes. We'll probably need a test dummy to check them all as they'll probably shoot us into the air."

"What makes you think they'll do that?" Link asked.

"They wouldn't put all those climbing fences and all that other junk up there without a way to get there." Kirby pointed upwards at some climbing fences and some other junk higher up in the tower.

"So, who's the test dummy?" Sonic asked.

Mario: Link?

"Uh…why me?"

"Because you're the main comedy of this story." Kirby explained.

"The main what?"

"Nothing. Anyway, Mario, Sonic, grab him and throw him into that pipe over there."

Mario and Sonic cornered the swordsman, and tackled him to the ground. They picked him up after wrestling him into submission, and tossed Link into the leftmost pipe. The pipe bent to the right, and shot at the wall in an arc. Link headed into the wall face-first, and slid down it, groaning. Everyone but Link winced.

"Uh...my bad. How about that one on the right?"

Mario and Sonic plopped Link into the rightmost pipe this time, and it bent to the left, and shot him out in an arc, and he landed inside the leftmost pipe feet-first after doing an unintentional flip and landing in it that way. The pipe bent to the right, and shot Link into the wall face-first again. He slid down it, groaning as everyone else winced again.

"OK, how a-" Kirby started to say.

"NO." Link said instantly while on the floor. "I've taken one too many knocks to the head…you do it."

Mario and Sonic exchanged confused glances, and decided to plop Kirby into the middle pipe. He was shot into the air, and gripped the first fence he went past. Link planted his hand on his face several times. As he did this, Kirby had climbed past several Koopas on the fence he was now on, reached a Star Coin in a hidden moon, and dropped back down to the others.

Without a word, Kirby tossed everyone into the middle pipe, and jumped in too, before the pipe shot all of them into the air. Mario and Kirby caught the fence on the way down, and Sonic caught the fence at the peak of the flight. Link caught Mario's leg.

Mario grabbed Link's arm, pulled it off his leg, and pushed it into the fence. Link gripped the fence now. The plumber then jumped to a higher but separate fence, and then an even higher but separate fence, which was bigger than the last two combined. Blocking their way up however, was a vertical line of Amps. Kirby climbed to the flip-able part of the fence, and pushed it, spinning the fence around, and causing the Amps to be stuck on the other side. Mario, Link and Sonic simply climbed through the now open path, and jumped on to some safe ground that was reachable from the right side of the fence.

Just because Kirby was on the other side of the fence didn't mean he couldn't get up on to the same ground the others were on, and he flew up there. Link slashed at a Red Koopa, except the second it saw that flaming sword, it withdrew into its shell. Link performed a Jump Attack, but than didn't harm the Koopa or even set it on fire…so he tossed a bomb at the shell, which knocked it off the blocks and it fell, flaming towards the ground.

Then there was a thud, and everyone said "Ooo…" in unison and winced.

Mario slid under a very low ceiling, just making it through, and told the others to climb up the other way. Mario raided a block for its Fire Flower, tossing his old one away to have a place to put the new one. The old Fire Flower hit a Koopa waltzing about, and it…it…gained the power-up.

The Koopa looked at its hands. They were hot and ready to burn. It looked at Mario, and he sweat-dropped, then quickly climbed up the fence and broke a brick block in the way of his only safe exit. The Koopa followed Mario out of the small room, and Link, Kirby and Sonic saw him get chased out of said room, up another fence. There was a Star Coin there, and the Koopa grabbed it since Mario had to ignore it.

. . .

"Uh…did anyone else see Mario get chased by a red Koopa with a white shell?" Sonic asked.

"Yeah…did you see how it was shooting fireballs?" Kirby asked.

"Yeah…but did it actually obtain a…Fire Flower?" Link asked.

"Probably." Kirby answered. "We're gonna have to help Mario AND find all the Star Coins in here at the same time."

"We don't NEED the Star Coins, y'know." Sonic said.

"I know, but they're so shiny." Kirby explained.

"If we're doing that, we need to split up." Link decided. "Sonic, you go help Mario. Me and Kirby will go the other way."

"OK, let's do it!" Kirby exclaimed, and Sonic chased after Mario and the Fire Koopa.

Link and Kirby climbed up to the point where the Star Coin used to be, and went right instead of continuing up like the Fire Koopa or Sonic. Link hacked through the wall of brick blocks while Kirby hammered every brick block into tiny pieces. It hardly took that long to get through, and Kirby carried Link through the little opening in the unbreakable blocks, and Kirby jumped on to the nearby fence, with a similar layout to the last fence with Amps. Kirby flipped the flip-able part of the fence, and was now on the front side with Link. They climbed through the newly created path, and broke through a couple of brick blocks, and jumped into a tiny room with a lone door. They entered it.

. . .

Link and Kirby entered a room with a red P-Switch and some dash blocks. Kirby figured out that if they hit the red P-Switch, the dash blocks would turn solid and red, and he'd have to get to the top in time to get something nice probably. Kirby instead, just grabbed Link, and flew to the top, where a door and Star Coin were waiting for them. Kirby took the coin, and they both entered the door…

. . .

…and came out of a grey door in a big room, and further down the lower section of the room was a grey door where Mario was cornered by the Fire Koopa. Sonic bounced out of the door, knocking the Koopa back, and it started to spray fireballs at both of them. Mario dodged the fireballs, jumped, somersaulted and stomped the Fire Koopa, knocking it on its back and causing it to lose its power-up. Sonic gave it a homing attack to the underbelly of its shell, and that cracked the shell.

Link jumped in front of the now exposed Koopa, and gave it a Spin Attack, defeating the Koopa in one go, and it dropped a Star Coin.

"So that's where the third one was…" Link realized as he watched Sonic grab it. They all hopped up to the higher part, and Kirby air-raided a pair of blocks above a fence, one of them wielding a Fire Flower, which Kirby pocketed.

The door to the boss was there…and they all entered it, where another trap-door made them fall into a battle room…with Bowser Jr in there. Instead of quicksand this time, there was water.

Mario: Now, tell me. Did you see my brother or not?

"I'm not going to tell you." Bowser Jr responded defiantly.

Mario sighed, and knew he wouldn't be getting an answer any time soon.

"Anyways…how 'bout that Hylian Shield of mine? Wanna give it back?" Link hinted.

"Nah, I don't feel like it."

Link pulled out his sword.

"I guess I'll have to make you give it back."

"Ha! I'd like to see you try!"

Mario threw several fireballs at Bowser Jr, and Link chucked a couple of bombs at the same target, Sonic joining in and boosting towards Bowser Jr. He pulled out the Hylian Shield, blocked the fireballs, reflected the bombs, and shield-bashed Sonic to a stop, knocking him to the floor. Mario jumped over the bombs and attempted to stomp Junior, but he dodged the attack. Link dived under the bombs, managing to stay out of the blast radius.

"I'm smarter than you think, y'know."

Kirby had snuck up on Junior from behind, used his Fire Flower, and gave him a boiling lump on the head with his Heated Hammer (which was the upgrade of his Wooden Hammer). Kirby then did a Fireball Dash straight into Junior, knocking him into the air. Mario leaped into the air, and pushed him to the ground with a mid-air stomp.

Link ran up to the kid, and performed a Spin Attack, striking the kid in the nose and setting him on fire. Bowser Jr jumped into the water, getting cooled down, and jumped back out. He withdrew into his shell, and Shell Tossed himself at Sonic, knocking him into the water.

"Can't! Swim! Help!" Sonic cried, somehow unable to last underwater.

"How'd you make it through the beach to us, then?"

"I forgot I couldn't swim, and that helped me slightly because I actually had confidence for a moment."

Mario helped Sonic out of the water. Kirby started breathing fire at Junior, but he was in his shell again, and was unaffected. Sonic ran up to the shell, and kicked it, sending him into the water. Sonic smirked…until he heard someone come out of the water, dripping wet.

"You know I can actually swim, right?"

"Uh…maybe."

Bowser Jr spat fire at Mario and Link, and didn't bother with Kirby because he was currently now in a nap…and wasn't a threat at all. They were both set on fire by one of the blasts eventually. Mario and Link lost their power-ups due to this.

Sonic approached Bowser Jr. He started charging up a Spin Dash. Bowser Jr withdrew into his shell, and started trying to mimic Sonic, and charged up a Shell Toss.

"Get ready…" Sonic said.

"Get ready…" Junior mimicked in a mocking voice.

Sonic frowned, and released his grip on the ground, rocketing into Junior, except he had done the same a millisecond later. They clashed into each other, Sonic having the slight advantage. They both landed on the walls of their respective sides, and Sonic jumped off his, and Homing-Attacked Junior, who dodged swiftly and landed on the battleground again.

Sonic boosted into Junior, knocking him over, and gave him a kick to the underbelly. Mario and Link had finally cooled themselves off, and dog-piled on Junior, getting him into submission.

"OK, OK, I give!" he wailed, dropping the Shield. "And I did see your brother, happy now?"

Mario: That's all I needed to know.

"Now, GET OFF ME!"

Bowser Jr threw everyone off suddenly, and started charging up a blast of fire that was overwhelmingly bright.

"Shield your eyes, everyone!" Link chuckled, shielding his eyes with his shield.

Bowser Jr blasted one the fortress' walls, and jumped through the newly created hole.

"After him!" Kirby ordered, everyone jumped through the hole and landing back outside, and continued to chase Bowser Jr, who had Peach still in tow.


	12. A Lot of Pipe

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 12: A Lot of Pipe

**3-B**

"How'd we even get up here, anyway?" Sonic asked.

"To be honest, I don't even know." Link said.

Mario: Random transitions?

"Perhaps." Fire Kirby said in a slightly posh tone.

Mario and friends were in the sky again…but their ground were pipes. Mario started things off by running to max speed, and hopping over a pipe when the Piranha Plant that inhabited it wasn't out. Link did the same, giving the Piranha Plant in the pipe a good jab (with his sword) in the mouth when it tried to bite him as he went over the pipe. Kirby carried Sonic over the pipe, and they did the same with a lower yellow pipe in the same order with the same events taking place, except they landed on a group of four pipes not connected to anything other than each other. Kirby smacked the two blocks above the pipes, and one of the wielded a Fire Flower, which Link grabbed and stored for later use.

He hopped on to another pipe, and saw a Piranha Plant with its mouth fixed wide open, and it was staring at him. Link found it funny, and made the face as well. Mario, Kirby and Sonic landed on the same pipe he was on, and saw the face. Kirby cracked up on sight, and Mario soon joined in. Sonic was on the floor in laughter moments later.

Link could feel something hot flying towards, him closed his mouth and saw a fireball was spat from the mouth of the Piranha Plant. Link yelped, and dived to the floor, dodging it just in time. Mario used the Fire Flower he had, and chucked a fireball in an arc, and it landed in the mouth of the Piranha Plant, and it started breathing fire at a constant rate, then withdrew back into its pipe.

"Mario, I think you just gave that Piranha Plant heartburn!" Link laughed as he hopped over the pipe the Piranha Plant was in, and ran under a red pipe, dodging a Piranha Plant trying to bite his head off. Mario passed him, jumped on to the green pipe up ahead, hopped high into the air, and bonked his head on an invisible block that wielded a Fire Flower. Link used his boomerang to clip it off the high block, and caught it on the spot, using it.

After a bit of manoeuvring through some pipes, Mario snatched a Fire Flower from a lone block near another Piranha Plant, ducking under another fireball. Sonic didn't do anything to the Plant as he'd get bitten in the process if he used any of his currently available attacks, and just sat on a pipe and watched. Kirby jumped up, and smashed the Piranha Plant back into the pipe, most likely defeating it because of the connection he made.

They all hopped on to a logic-defying green pipe that was clearly floating in the air with no connection to anything else around it. Then they hopped on to a green pipe next to a horizontal line of unbreakable blocks, ending at another green pipe. Sonic bounced on to the yellow pipe ahead, and after Mario and Kirby cleared the way, they all made their way into a lone red pipe once Mario discovered it was enterable.

. . .

Mario landed on a yellow pipe, and ran to a group of 8 pipes all close together. He made his way through the Piranha Plants, one biting him and causing the plumber to lose his power-up. Kirby hammered the rest of 'em, and Mario entered the only enterable pipe, a red one. He came back with a Star Coin in hand, and they left the secret area.

. . .

Kirby had to clear the way before anyone could move on, because most of the Piranha Plants had grown back and were swarming the place. After some steady jumping, Sonic led the way to a green pipe, and jumped at a red pipe high in the air, wall-jumping off at it, and wall-jumping off a green pipe that he flew into, landing on a thin green pipe and snagging a Star Coin. Fire Kirby raided the blocks below the thin green pipe, and found a Fire Flower, putting it away, wherever that was.

Sonic continued to run after sliding down a green pipe to get back to low ground again, and jumped on to the left pipe of a plus formation of four pipes. He jumped on to another plus formation, and hopped on to a red pipe. He ran across it, and slid down a green pipe he jumped into, walking under a green pipe and finding a Star Coin, obviously grabbing it.

Sonic bounced up to a red pipe floating in mid-air, and hopped at the flagpole, netting 2000 Points.

Link jumped at the flagpole, getting stepped on and got 800 Points.

Mario used Link as a step, and got a 1-UP.

Kirby simply hopped at the flagpole from the lowest point, getting 1000 Points.

They all slid down it, and reached a beach after some walking.

"Ugh, more beach." Sonic groaned. "I've done enough drowning for a lifetime."

**3-C**

Mario: Look, a red winged block.

"MINE!" Link yelled.

"Nah, not today." Kirby said firmly, inhaling him and keeping Link captive in his mouth. "Give someone else a go, will ya?"

"Yuck…blargh…ugh…" Link groaned from inside Kirby.

Sonic jumped up, and smashed the block towards the ground. It broke on impact, wielding a Blue Shell. Sonic touched it…and didn't get a shell. Instead, he suddenly felt faster. Sonic could feel the rush of energy flow through him, and he had the urge to do something. Soon, he gave into the urge, and started running in circles, whipping up a tornado.

Sonic jumped into the air, and flew around in his ball form in a circle, causing a blue tornado to form even more, and a Spike Bass jumped out of the water in an attempt to attack him, and it was caught in the tornado. Sonic dropped out of his tornado, and watched as the Spike Bass was thrown far out of sight by the tornado.

"Ah!" Sonic stretched. "I haven't done my Blue Tornado in a long time, not since that time when I had three days to stop Eggman. It was really useful then, blowing away Egg Pawn's shields and spears. That Blue Shell must have reawakened that power."

Sonic darted ahead, creating another Blue Tornado and throwing a lone Goomba into the water. Mario bashed the blocks there, and collected a Fire Flower, and using it. The Spike Bass then came back, and this time, it was blasted towards the seabed with a fireball from Mario.

It was really simple jumping around from there. Some Koopas there, some Goombas over here, and a couple of falling platforms. By the time the Spike Bass was back for some revenge, Mario and friends had made it to a group of falling platforms above the first Star Coin.

"So…who's getting it?" Kirby asked. "Not me!"

"Not me!" Sonic shouted.

Mario shook his head rapidly.

"Uh…not me?" Link suggested.

. . .

Link was thrown on to the connecting second and third falling platforms, landing on the Star Coin and meeting eye to eye with the Spike Bass. It jumped at him…to get shot down by Mario again.

"Seriously, when did you get such a sharp accuracy with throwing those?" Link asked, grabbing Sonic's outstretched arm and allowing him to pull him back up to the safe platforms.

Mario: Practice, practice, practice. I used to be so inaccurate, I would miss a whole barn even if I was right next to it!

"You know you're gonna have to tell me some of those stories one day." Link said as he watched Mario shoot down the Spike Bass again."

"Hey, were you a very good swordsman when you started out?" Kirby asked.

"No…I was terrible." Link said. "What about you? Were you good when you started out?"

"I wasn't very good at first, when I was getting used to using enemies' powers." Kirby said. "I was pretty horrible too. Hey, Sonic, were you bad at first?"

"Nah, I was good…but I WAS kinda clumsy, and I was tripping about a lot."

"SPIKE BASS!" Link screamed at the Spike Bass jumping towards him. Mario jumped in front of him, and gave the Spike Bass a black eye, sending it back into the water and heard it grumble incoherent things. "Phew…thanks for the save, Mario."

Mario nodded. Kirby then spoke up. "Poyo…we really should hurry up and continue…we've just been standing here all this time."

Mario jumped at a Koopa on a separate platform, and gave it a Ground Pound, driving it into its shell and careening off the platform, into the water…hitting the Spike Bass and knocking it out again. Link ended up finding Sonic and Kirby fighting off some Cheep Cheep, who were leaping out of the water and were getting all up in their faces.

Mario started to blast the Cheep Cheep with fireballs while Link held up his shield and ran by without glancing down, successfully getting past the first round of jumping Cheep Cheep. Soon they reached floating land…and they all breathed a sigh of relief as Link checked a block for a Fire Flower, and indeed there was, and Kirby swiped it.

The Spike Bass came back once again, and Kirby breathed a wave of fire at it, scorching and sending it back into the water, cooling down in the water and waiting for another chance to strike. Link tripped and fell into the water…and the Spike Bass grinned.

"Hey, Star Coin." Link noticed, looking up to see a Star Coin below a platform he could jump through. He jumped out of the water, and the Spike Bass bit the air, hurting its teeth and its eyes started to water. Link snagged the Star Coin, bounced off the non-spiky part of the Spike Bass, and landed on the platform above. "Heh, that's how it's done."

The Spike Bass jumped into the wall near where the Star Coin was, bounced off of it, and knocked Link's leg, causing him to fall over and lose his power-up. Kirby cracked up instantly. Sonic ignored this, and bounced on a Koopa on another platform, sending it into its shell. He whipped up a Blue Tornado, and hurled a Koopa into the water, straight into the Spike Bass, knocking it out yet again.

"This thing's WAY more persistent than last time…" Link remarked.

Mario hit a P-Switch, and started following a trail of coins, and everyone started following Mario, Sonic quickly taking the lead. There was a star in a block that Mario stopped for, and Mario was powered up. Kirby touched Mario, and gained star power too, losing his Fire power-up and got the Star Rod to replace it. Link touched Kirby, and he gained the Master Sword, and a Golden Shield, along with a super powered Boomerang, and some very explosive bombs. They all wrecked their way through by firing star beams and running into things and hacking and slashing along with some sword beams, and to top it all off, some crazy spin attacks, then reaching some blocks that were coins earlier, with a pipe easily accessed by jumping from the middle of the blocks. Sonic made it through just fine, Mario could feel the P-Switch wearing off, and Kirby floated into the pipe. Link jumped the second they disappeared, and made it into the pipe just in time.

. . .

They popped out on to a falling platform…except it fell when Sonic stepped on it, and he grabbed a Star Coin on the way down. He realized there was water at the bottom, and leaped towards the land in front of him. Mario came out, and fell into the water, swimming to land. Kirby came out, and floated to land. Link came out, and fell into the water pretty hard, getting dragged to land by Mario and Kirby. Once they were all out of the water, it was a hop, skip and jump to the flagpole.

Mario got a 1-UP by finding a hidden block to help give him more height.

Link got 4000 Points by using Kirby as a platform.

Kirby got 8000 Points even though Link used him as a platform because he just floated a bit higher than him.

Sonic got a 1-UP by using his Blue Tornado to get to the top.

They all slid down, and continued across the beach.


	13. The House of Ghosts

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 13: The House of Ghosts

**3-3**

There were two pipes. One yellow, one green.

"Uh…I can tell where this is going…so yeah, see ya." Sonic said quickly, taking the much longer but dry path across the beach.

"Is this really gonna be a…" Kirby started, jumping into the green pipe.

. . .

"…water level. Great." Link finished. "Just when I thought we were in the clear, they throw a fastball at us."

Mario, Link and Kirby all had some kind of firepower, so it was a breeze for them. Kirby looted a block, and stored the Fire Flower…somewhere. Mario just sprayed fireballs at anything that moved, Link hacked at anything that got all up in his face, and Kirby just breathed fire ahead of him. However logic-defying this was, it was quite effective.

There was soon a giant hole below the trio, and as they dropped into it, Link spotted a Star Coin, and once Kirby was alerted to it, he nabbed it like nobody's business. A P-Switch was spotted behind a green pipe with air blowing out of it. Mario sat on it, and all the pipes with air blowing out of 'em stopped blowing air out of them.

"Uh…wasn't there some pipes that were blowing out air in a way that didn't let us proceed?" Kirby recalled.

"We should probably start swimming…fast."

Mario started spinning as he swam, getting that extra bit of speed every time. Mario made it past the pipes alright, Link too, and Kirby slipped in at the nick of time. Link ignored the red ring.

. . .

_He saw a Red Ring, and lunged for it, falling through it, and landing on a group of mushrooms which liked to bob up and down. He saw 8 red coins, and collected the first 7, and lunged for the last one, but it disappeared just before Link touched it, and he fell on to the last bobbing mushroom._

. . .

_He powered up, and after a few bounces, he went through a red ring._

_Mario got Red Coin 1 and 2. Link got 3, 4 and 5. Mario got 6 and 7. Link missed 8._

_"Again?" he moaned._

. . .

"Bad memories…" Link mused to himself as he checked a green pipe that looked enterable…and it was.

. . .

He popped out of the green pipe in a kind of Blooper playground. Mario and Kirby popped out of the pipe moments after, and Kirby could sense something in the area. Mario grabbed Kirby, and pointed him in front of him.

Mario: Where's the Star Coin?

"Poyo." Kirby said, swimming downwards, and pulling Mario with him. He took him straight ahead once they couldn't go any lower, soon finding the Star Coin in a corner. The second Kirby stored it in his mouth, all the Bloopers glared at them, making sounds.

"BLOOOOOOP…"

"BLOOP!"

"BLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO P."

"BLOOP!"

"ACK!" Link cried, swimming upwards and forwards, looking for a way out. Mario and Kirby soon found him being chased by a Blooper Nanny and several Blooper Babies tagging along. He soon found the exit in the top-right section of the room, and hastily made his leave, quickly followed by Mario and Kirby.

. . .

They shot out of the pipe, straight into a current, that flung them into a pattern of pipes shooting them left and right as they aimlessly were tossed about. Link bonked his head at the bottom of the large pit the pattern of pipes were in, and saw a Star Coin lying on him. Link picked it up, and a group of four Bloopers appeared out of thin air.

"BLOOP!"

Link yelped, and swam up, holding his Star Coin to his chest. Mario and Kirby saw him get chased, and made their way up too, making it to the green pipe at the top before they were mobbed by Bloopers.

"BLOOP…"

. . .

Mario poked his head out of the pipe's end. A hedgehog hopped over him like he was a hurdle.

"Wow, that must have been quick. Still was worth running instead, though." Sonic said, doing some stretches before making his way over some pipes to the flagpole, nabbing a nice 2000 Points.

Mario followed suit, and got 4000 Points. Link got 1000 Points, and Kirby gained a 1-UP.

"Hey, it's raining!" Link pointed out, feeling drops of rain.

"No, it's POURING!" Sonic yelped, large, heavy drops of rain smashing on to his fur. "This is some crazy rain!"

"Look, shelter!" Kirby said, pointing at a Ghost House.

Mario: That's a Ghost House.

"And? This is rain. I'm going in there!" Sonic said, dashing into the Ghost House. Mario shrugged, and followed him inside. Kirby and Link exchanged glances, and strolled into the Ghost House too.

**3-Ghost House**

Thunder boomed the second the door closed.

"If my buddy Tails was here, he'd be scared to death already…glad he isn't." Sonic said, looking through a window.

Kirby flew up to a pair of blocks, and smacked them with his hammer. A Fire Flower came flying out of the block, falling into an endless pit. Kirby pouted.

It was a simple walk to a ?-Switch, which was hammered in by Kirby.

"Look, some stairs appeared!" Link pointed out, walking up a staircase that was once a steep slope. Sonic blazed up it, knocking Link into a tumble down the stairs. Mario and Kirby were running up it as this happened, and jumped over Link, making it to the top along with Sonic. Link got up, and made one last sprint for the top, but the stairs retracted into the slope, and he started to slide down again.

Mario quickly extended his hand, grabbing Link by the leg. He threw him with all his might over his head, and the swordsman landed on Kirby.

"I am not a pillow." Kirby said, throwing Link down another steep slope to the right. A Boo giggled, and smacked Kirby upside the head, and down the same slope Link rolled down, also making him lose his power-up. The same Boo was about to slap up Mario too, but Sonic didn't let it happen. He curled up into a ball, and circled the ghost, starting up a crazy whirlwind which flung the ghost in the opposite direction of where the four heroes where heading.

Sonic slid down the slope like it was a rail, and leaped off halfway down, dodging a Boo who tried licking him, and landing on a lone platform. Mario slid down the same slope, crashing into the pile of Kirby and Link. Once they all got off each other, the trio jumped to the same platform Sonic was on, and Link jump-attacked a nearby Splunkin, knocking it over. He started hacking at it, and a sharp crack was heard after several vicious blows. Its pumpkin skin cracked, and most of it peeled off, revealing a crimson red inner skin.

It charged and bumped into Link, knocking him over and causing him to lose his power-up.

"Who do you think you are, a Bumpkin?" Link asked with a smirk on his face, getting up and spin attacking the pumpkin-skinned foe off the edge. He sat down to regain his energy.

Mario, Sonic and Kirby walked past him, and stopped at a door.

"Who's going inside?" Kirby asked. "To check if it's safe. Not me!"

"Not me!" Sonic instantly said.

Mario: Not me!

"It's always me, isn't it?" Link asked, getting up and approaching the door. The others nodded. Link entered.

"Oh, there's a Fire Flower in here!" Link called from the other side of the open door. "ACK! Somebody stuffed a Boo in a block!"

Link came running out of the room, shutting the door and leaning on it to keep it closed. The Boo inside kept giggling.

"Don't. Go. Back. In. There." He said, panting before reaching another door further down the room after a few jumps. Mario, Link, Kirby and Sonic surrounded the door, and Mario entered alone.

. . .

He was now in a room with four Splunkins walking in a line a fair bit away from each other. He bounced off the first one, and the second, then the third, and finally the fourth, revealing their crimson red inner-skin and making them walk faster. Mario was looking down until this point, and when he looked up, he saw a Star Coin…and landed on the fourth one a second time, causing it to explode. He did the same with the third, using the boost to grab the Star Coin, and bounced off the second and first, landing before a door. The room was pretty clear for the most part now, so Mario left the room.

. . .

Mario flashed his Star Coin at the others, and Kirby smacked the nearby ?-Switch, causing the slope overhead to become a staircase and a up-down platform came down to pick the heroes up. They all hopped on to it, and a Boo smacked up Link, nearly making him fall off the platform. Kirby covered a laugh with a cough, but it was still obvious. Link elbowed Kirby, and the puffball hammered him off the platform in retaliation.

Kirby floated to the left, over another staircase, and nabbed a Star Coin. He floated back to the right, and landed on some safe ground at the top of the staircase…which now became a slope. Mario and Sonic had made it up, but Link wasn't even halfway back up thanks to Kirby, and it was pointless for him to fight against such steep conditions. In the end, the swordsman didn't make it, and decided to sit down next to the ?-Switch, eyeing the nearby Boo so it didn't try anything.

Sonic and Kirby slid down a staircase they were walking down once it became a slope, and bashed a block tucked in a corner. Out came a ?-Switch, and Kirby hammered it. The slope they were just on became a staircase, and Kirby and Sonic climbed back up it, and followed Mario who had jumped into what they thought for a moment was a pit. A door had appeared here, and they entered it.

. . .

As soon as the ?-Switch was hit by Kirby, a door had appeared next to Link, and the swordsman jumped from the sudden entrance. He entered it anyway, and ended up outside. There was a red flagpole.

. . .

A Boo smacked up Mario as Kirby inhaled a Fire Flower Sonic revealed from a block. The plumber lost his power-up as Kirby gained one. Mario scaled a couple of blocks and platforms, reaching a Roulette Block and getting a Blue Shell. Mario rammed into the Boo while in his shell, and knocked it out...somehow. They ignored the ?-Switch, and travelled up the massive slope before them in their own ways. Mario withdrew into his shell again and shell-slid up it, ramming through the Splunkins who stood in his way. Kirby just flew up to the top, and Sonic ran with all his might up the slope. At the top, there was a door, along with a pair of blocks blocking a Star Coin in a two-block high passage.

Link suddenly appeared out of nowhere, falling on to Kirby who had just made it up to the top.

"A door appeared where I was sitting, and I entered it. Then I saw a red flagpole, and after some walking, a cannon. Wasn't worth my time, so I warped to where you guys were…which was here." Link explained as Mario broke through the two blocks blocking the Star Coin and nabbing it, making his way back to the door.

Kirby signalled it was time to leave, and they all exited through the door, now outside.

There was a black flagpole. Mario got a 1-UP, Sonic got a 1-UP, Link got 800 Points and Kirby got a 1-UP.

As they all slid down the pole and walked onwards, the sun started shining once they got a fair bit away from the Ghost House.

"Hey, it's not raining anymore!" Sonic pointed out, staring at the sunshine.

"Hey, look, a castle." Kirby said, pointing at a large castle in the distance. "Bowser Jr is probably in there, so we should probably enter the castle to probably manage to save Peach, who probably is in there…probably."

The others nodded, even if they didn't really understand that. Mario started running towards the castle, Sonic running after him and quickly being the one being ran after. Link and Kirby followed suit, and the castle was getting closer and closer…


	14. A Very Cheep Castle

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 14: A Very Cheep Castle

**3-Castle**

Link jumped up to a higher spot the first chance he could. The swordsman jumped down, and walked further along. Sonic glanced up, and saw a spike bar about an inch ahead of the higher spot of ground. It started to drill downwards, heading straight for the blue ledge Link was walking across. He gasped, then in the blink of an eye, Sonic knocked Link out of the way of the spike bar with a dive. The bar drilled into the water, and stopped.

"That…was too close for comfort." Sonic said after a short silence, getting up as Mario and Kirby waited for the spike bar to rise back up, which it did after a couple of seconds. Both of them sprinted past the spike bar, then barely skimmed the second which came drilling down into the water just like the first.

"Please tell me this castle isn't full of these…" Link begged, watching in fear of the spike bar rising back up. Sonic grabbed him, and tossed Link past the spike bar's hit box. He jumped, and easily made it by the spike bar too.

There was a block. Mario bonked it. Out came a Fire Flower. Link used the one he already had.

"I probably won't even need it, but…"

Link snagged it, and walked a couple of steps before getting drilled by a spike bar. When it came back up, Link was all flat on the pointy part of it. Mario grabbed the flat Link, and rolled him up into a tube.

"There's been a spike in the amount of pain I've been receiving right now." Link groaned. "So, how are you gonna fix me back up?"

"I've an idea! How about I do this?!" Kirby said, then opening his mouth and inhaling Link. After tossing him about in his mouth, Kirby spat the poor swordsman out, and he was no longer flat…but he WAS very wet, drenched in…Kirby slobber. Sonic shivered.

"Uh…Sonic, can you dry me off?" Link asked, receiving a nod and a thumbs-up from the hedgehog. Sonic bounded into the air, and performed his Blue Tornado, Link in the eye of the storm. It took a couple of seconds to get Link dried off this way. Once he was, though, they all started making some progress again by jumping under a spike bar about to drill into their heads. Mario gripped Link who was gripping the ledge, trying to pull himself up. Kirby floated to the platform without much of a struggle. Sonic was holding on to Mario for dear life as they were now above exposed water.

Once the spike bar ahead of them came back up, Kirby flung the three over the ledge and on to the floor below the spike bar. They looked up, and jumped to the higher, safe ground nearby in a heartbeat.

Sonic bounded past the spike bar in front of them, barely making it on to the next spot of ground. He turned back to look at the others, but caught a glimmer of a Star Coin instead…which was quickly blocked off from view by a spike bar.

"Hey, guys, there's a Star Coin down there!" Sonic called, pointing at the Star Coin's location once the spike bar came back up.

Link thought for a moment, then came up with an idea.

"MARIO! THERE'S A SQUAD OF FANGIRLS STAMPEDING TOWARDS YOU! QUICK, HIDE IN YOUR SHELL FOR PROTECTION!" Link yelled.

Mario didn't even bother looking around, and instantly withdrew into his shell. Link snickered, though the plumber didn't hear it. Kirby dived at Sonic once the spike bar rose, and clamped on to his head, hoping he'd be safe. Sonic yelped as this happened.

Link waited a bit longer, then blasted Mario down, into the wall down there, bouncing off of it and crossing a blue platform and somehow nabbing the Star Coin just before bouncing off of the other wall…straight into a spike bar. He grinded against the spike bar for a moment, and went it came back up, he slowed to a stop, popping out of his shell in a dazed state.

He looked up, and gasped. He back-flipped up to the platform Sonic and Kirby were on, barely dodging the spike bar. Link jumped towards the platform, and the back of his shoes just about made it on. Mario resisted the urge to push Link into the spike bar's line of fire, and waited for him to recover. He sheepishly smiled at Mario, and the plumber just nodded.

"Can someone please get Kirby off my head?" Sonic asked, walking around aimlessly. After a while, someone threw Kirby off of Sonic's head, and clonked Sonic on the head with a bone, and then smashed Link in the knee with the same bone, causing him to take damage just like Sonic…and also fall on the floor. After he eventually recovered, he ate a Fire Flower, and felt as good as new. Sonic stepped back, and kneeled down to recover. "That was NOT what I meant."

A Dry Bones was holding a bone, glaring at Sonic. It then noticed Mario's presence, and chucked a different bone at him. The plumber hid in his shell swiftly, blocking the bone toss and hearing it shatter against the hard surface of the shell.

"This might just be the same Fire Koopa from earlier!" Link realized. "It seems to hate us…and actually may be a threat! I wonder what happened to it…?"

"It probably fell in lava after we defeated it." Sonic guessed, ducking under a bone swipe.

Kirby took out his own Hammer, and smashed the enraged Dry Bones in the head…causing it to topple over and become just a pile of bones.

The group then waited for the spike bar in front of them to lower back into the water. Kirby spotted a loose spike on the bar, and started inhaling it. The spike was loose…but not loose enough to be inhaled. Kirby stepped up his game and started super-inhaling, and that was then when the spike started to shake. After a couple of seconds, it came out, and into Kirby's mouth, allowing him to become Spike Kirby!

The spike bar was down now, so they all hopped from their spot on to two small donut blocks. A spike bar came down in front of them, and the one behind them came up.

"This…is nerve-wracking. People…don't…move…" Link groaned.

"Poyo, aren't these donut blocks?" Kirby asked.

The two donut blocks the four heroes were squashed on started falling.

"JUMP, MAN!" Sonic wailed.

Mario jumped at the spike bar coming back up, only to go under it, and land on safe ground. Link stammered, nearly into the water, but managed to keep his footing. Kirby chucked Sonic towards the safe ground Mario was on, and grabbed Link, carrying him to the safe ground too.

"That was waaaaay to close for comfort." Sonic sighed. "Thanks, Kirby."

Kirby nodded, then bashed a nearby block…which made a Fire Flower show up. Link snagged it, then continued walking. There were a couple of Whomps standing around, waiting for unsuspecting pedestrians to come by.

Link passed the first one. It jumped, and landed on Link. Mario gasped, then ran over to the Whomp, and ground-pounded it before it could get up again. The other Whomp gasped. Mario gave the Whomp a hard stare.

Mario: Remember me? Super Mario?

The Whomp started to flee from him, heading towards some spikes. Kirby chased the Whomp, and curled up into a spike ball, charging up speed before ramming into the walking block of concrete. The Whomp groaned, then exploded into many tiny bits.

Sonic picked up Link, and threw him inside Kirby's open mouth. After repeating what he did last time, Kirby spat out Link, not flat anymore. Mario shivered.

"I have a strange feeling of déjà vu." Link said, eventually managing to dry himself.

`Sonic bounced towards a Whomp on some spikes, and in instinct, it jumped, and landed on the spikes again. Sonic landed on the Whomp, and waited for the others to jump on to the Thwomp too. It started to shake, so Mario, Link and Kirby jumped for the pole ahead, gripping it and climbing up. Sonic bounced on the Thwomp weakly, not damaging it, then bounced on the Thwomp once more, causing cracks in it.

He bounced on it one last time, and went high enough to grab a Star Coin, then gripping a ledge nearby. He glanced down, to see the Thwomp in pieces, with dangerous spikes looking at him instead. Sonic sweat-dropped, then climbed up and ran for a bit, before hitting a wall and falling into a pit, landing on another strip of ground. He ran for a bit, and saw some rope.

Link grabbed the rope, and swung back and forth for a bit, locking eyes with a massive Thwomp.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Link howled.

"You're not Tarzan." Kirby said, getting ignored.

Once the swordsman was swinging back and forth quite rapidly, he let go of the rope, and soared into the Thwomp. The impact of the blow caused the Thwomp to nearly topple over and several large cracks were created. Link landed on a small spot near the Thwomp, and dived into the safety hole now that it was exposed. The Thwomp looked around, but didn't see anything, and returned to its normal spot.

Link could see the foot of the Thwomp, and stabbed it with his sword. The Thwomp howled, and fell into the water nearby, taking several donut blocks with it. Kirby pulled Mario out of the way, and flew him over to Link. Sonic came running, jumped for the rope, and swung over to land. Once they were all present, they marched up to a pair of donut blocks over a spike bar in the water, and once it went up and back down again, they all quickly jumped across…except Link was a tad bit too slow and ended up grazing the spike bar.

Link ran up to a block, bashed it, getting a Mushroom, and gulping it, his energy now restored. They jumped to another piece of ground, and there were several spike bars in a line there.

"We're gonna have to dash, people. You ready?" Kirby asked.

"FINALLY! I've been waiting for another chance to stretch my legs." Sonic said.

The spike bars came back into their positions, ready to go drilling possibly into something in a few seconds. Sonic broke into a sprint, dashing past a pair of bars and jumped over a third. He ran past a fourth, hopped over a fifth, slid under a sixth and bounced over a high wall, dodging a seventh that came out of the water and landing before the boss door.

While the others were trying to get to where Sonic was, he had ducked, and was charging up a Spin Dash. A spike bar past a one-block high gap in the wall had come back up, and Sonic caught it doing that, and released. He rocketed through the gap and into the wall that followed.

The hedgehog was now in water. He yelped, blasting out of the water in shock and grabbing the ledge of a gap in the wall, where a Star Coin was chilling. Sonic's legs were nearly touching the razor-sharp spikes, and the spike bar was going to start moving very soon. He had to act fast, and he did indeed. Sonic pushed himself away from the ledge, falling towards an L-shape block formation. He wall-jumped off the vertical part, and landed in the small gap, just before the spike bar went down.

It was pretty simple getting back. Sonic closed his eyes, and dived into the water, and sprinted towards land again. He climbed up past the blue ledge, and stood next to the boss door, waiting for the others.

Mario and Kirby blazed through the spike bars quite quickly, and were at Sonic in record time…though Mario's Fire Flower was grazed and fell in the water as he jumped over the third bar. Link dodged the first two bars, but was knocked out of the air by the third bar. He struggled to his feet, and swallowed a Fire Flower.

The swordsman ran under the fourth bar, and tripped over the fifth as it started going up while Link was in mid-jump. He tumbled past the sixth just in time, and fell on to the higher ground next to the boss door.

"Took ya long enough. Let's go." Sonic urged, entering the door.

Mario, Link and Kirby entered too.

. . .

There was an open body of water in front of them. Sonic jumped over it, and landed on some land a fair bit ahead. Mario swam over there, with Link on his head. Kirby simply flew to the other side.

The four heroes climbed up the steps, and entered a room. A wall of blocks formed behind them. Bowser Jr was standing there. He saw the heroes.

"You think you can handle Cheepskipper?" Bowser Jr pointed at the group, then snapped his fingers. "If you can, then go ahead, 'cause here he comes!"

He jumped through the exit to the right, and a wall of blocks formed there, too. Then a large purple and white Cheep Cheep with yellow fins and two sharp fangs poking out from its bottom lip came swimming into the room.

"I knew this room seemed fishy…" Link grinned. Kirby fell on the floor in laughter.

Cheepskipper leaped out of the water, smashing Mario in the face and knocking him over.

"That was definitely a CHEEP shot!" Link chuckled as Sonic helped Mario back up. The fish was bouncing across the bridge. Kirby curled up into a spike ball, and bowled himself at Cheepskipper, sending the fish flying back into the water. Cheep Cheeps started jumping out of the water randomly.

Link tried to hack at Cheepskipper when he lunged at Mario, but missed, just like the fish ended up doing. It hit the wall, and fell back into the water. Link was suddenly pelted by Cheep Cheeps, and collapsed. Sonic fed his friend his Fire Flower, and the swordsman was up and running again in a heartbeat.

Cheepskipper came flopping out of the water once more, but was homing-attacked back into the water by Sonic. The hedgehog winked. Cheepskipper swam back and forth as his Cheep Cheep minions were doing the damage. Link had to resort to eating Kirby's Fire Flower because some Cheep Cheeps had swarmed him.

The big fish finally decided to leap out of the water, only to get jump-attacked by Link, and then hacked until it was nearly turned into sushi, but the fish somehow managed to escape the attacks…but was then stomped by a foot…and after getting clonked in the head by two spiky balls, it exploded into a white light, leaving behind a key, Sonic picked up the key, and held it skywards, causing the wall of blocks blocking the exit to disappear.

One of Cheepskipper's fins were resting on the bridge. Mario walked up to it, and picked it up, then walking into the next room with the others. Bowser Jr saw the fins, gasped, and smacked Mario's hand, causing him to drop the fin. Bowser Jr swiped it, and then he griped Peach even tighter with his other hand, and ran out of the castle, heading towards the forest in the distance.

* * *

**It feels like there's something missing in the boss fight of this chapter, but I don't know what.**

**If you haven't noticed by now, my completionist instinct is currently ruling me when I write this story, so just about every level in the game will make an appearance, including the ones from the secret worlds...because each world has a role of some sort. And just to clear this up for everyone, the Link in particular that's travelling with Mario is Toon Link.**


	15. Sunset Surfing and Trouble Stirring

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 15: Sunset Surfing and Trouble Stirring

Link led the group through the forest.

"So, where do you think this stream of poisonous water will lead us?" Sonic asked, starting a conversation.

"Well, because it happens to be a stream of poisonous water, I'd think it would lead us to a lake of poisonous water." Kirby answered.

Mario: And touching said poisonous water would be highly lethal, probably having the same effect lava would have on us if we touched it.

"I hope there aren't any spiders here…" Link mumbled to himself.

. . .

Luigi trudged across the beach. He had been chasing Junior for quite a while, but lost him at one point. There was no actual hint on where for him to go from here, so he was completely lost.

Just then, he saw Junior riding past on a Bullet Bill.

"Oh, there he is!" Luigi cried, running along the shore and trying to keep up with the Bullet Bills. "But…can I really catch him on foot?"

A medium-sized box, a fair bit taller than Luigi and quite a bit wider than him drifted towards the shore, and stopped before him. Luigi inspected it closer, and opened it. There was a green turtle with brown legs and a brown head inside. Luigi kicked the box over, and the turtle slid out…along with a pair of Fire Flowers, one of the latter Luigi took and used without a second thought…the other he stored for later use.

"A turtle that doesn't seem to be moving…is it…dead?" Luigi gasped…only to realize it was robotic upon closer inspection. "Why? Why would someone send me a robotic turtle?"

Luigi suddenly had an idea, and heaved the robotic turtle into the ocean. He hopped on to it, and searched it for any buttons or activation switches of sorts. He felt a small red button on the bottom, and poked it. This made the turtle's eyes light up and become lights, which weren't the most helpful, seeing as it was only sunset now…but nevertheless, it would still be quite useful.

The Robotic Turtle twisted its head around a bit to see Luigi, and started scanning him.

"Life-form identified as human. Name…Luigi. Affiliations? Super Mario."

"Wah!" Luigi yelped at the sudden robotic voice.

"I am a robot. I am a turtle. You may refer to me as a ROBOTIC TURTLE. Toadsworth was the one who sent this to you, learning of your location through certain…channels. He obtained this from Professor E. Gadd, and had a feeling you'd need me. I have no need for explanations. Use me as you will."

Luigi noticed a little slider on the back of the turtle's head, and slid it up to "FAST", and it started moving. The turtle went faster, and faster, until it suddenly had a massive speed boost and was going as fast, if not, faster than any Bullet Bill!

"Wah! This robotic turtle is fast!"

He soon caught up to Junior, and slid it down to "BULLET BILL", lowering its surfing speed to stay slightly behind the Bullet Bill. Luigi managed to get to his feet again, and leaped at Junior, who still was not aware of Luigi being right behind him. The plumber bounced off his head, causing Junior to cry out and look behind him. He stood up on the Bullet Bill, and pointed at the plumber who had landed on the robotic turtle.

"YOU! I don't need to waste time with you…I need to get back to the forest fortress as soon as possible! Mario and the others are most likely heading to that location as I speak, and the princess is up there alone…the only thing that could possibly stop them would be the minions in there…but how likely is that?"

"That…is a lot of sudden info…but you w-w-won't be getting to that fortress any time soon!" Luigi said, wobbling as the robotic turtle kept going.

"What? You're going to stop me? Hah, yeah right." Bowser Jr spat some fireballs at Luigi, and he rocketed over both of them, stomping Junior's head once more. "OK, maybe you will if I keep up that same old pattern…"

Junior turned his Bullet Bill around, and waited till the Robotic Turtle passed him before pursuing. Luigi glanced behind him, and gasped. Junior was coming at him, full throttle!

He jumped, and kicked Junior off the Bullet Bill, feeling a bit of guilt when Junior fell into the ocean. He stopped the Robotic Turtle, and watched the spot where Junior fell in for a while.

Nothing happened. Nothing surfaced. Nothing survived? Perhaps.

. . .

Link was waiting for the others…who had disappeared suddenly while they were walking.

"Wood you guys hurry up already?" Link joked. No groaning. No laughter. No response. "Um…guys? You still there?"

Chortles were heard from the trees nearby…and a group of Scuttle Bugs came down, hanging on their strings. Three of them were holding Mario, Kirby and Sonic respectively on strings.

"Ugh, spiders." Link groaned. "Great. They stole my friends."

. . .

Luigi was considering leaving at this point, but when the water started to vibrate, Luigi thought otherwise. The wind blew, leaves making it even this far, and the way the wind blew, it seemed to be howling something in a whisper.

_Something's stirring…_

Just then, a giant purple Blooper shot out of the water. It was wearing a silver crown, so it may be royalty. It raised its tentacle, and slammed it into the water, sending Luigi and the Robotic Turtle flying…

. . .

"So, how did you guys end up hanging around with pests like them?" Link chuckled.

"Even when we're in trouble, you crack puns. That's what I call dedication." Kirby laughed.

The Scuttle Bugs didn't find the joke funny, and they all hissed.

"Wow. Tough crowd." Link said, getting silenced.

"So, you asked, how did we end up pretending to be bats?" Sonic smirked. "Well, we'll tell you when you save us."

The Scuttle Bugs which were holding a hero headed up into the cover of the leaves, and several Scuttle Bugs approached and surrounded Link, who readied himself to finally battle…

. . .

Luigi woke up on an O-shaped arena, with a body of water where the hole would be. He was still surrounded by ocean, but the beach was no longer in sight. Instead, there was a forest far in the distance, with a ton of water cutting him off from it. The Robotic Turtle was in the water near the outer part of the donut, ready to take Luigi places. He could easily fall into the water in any spot of this arena, seeing as there was nothing to stop him from falling in. No walls. No ceilings. No fences. None of that stuff.

"So, you thought you killed me, like how Mario killed my Papa?" Junior asked. "You did, didn't you? Admit it!"

Luigi gasped, and looked at the center of the arena, where the body of water was. Junior was standing in his little Clown Car, which was floating above the body of water. Luigi felt the guilt wash away.

"Well, I have a little gift for you for what you did earlier." Junior whistled, and the giant crowned purple blooper shot out of the water again, and rested its tentacles on the arena. "This…is Fablooper. She's the one who you saw earlier…and she's the one who's going to knock you out! Go get him, Fablooper!"

Fablooper slammed the spot where Luigi was with her tentacles, knocking Luigi off his feet…but not directly striking him. Fablooper winked, and started spinning, holding out her tentacles, and looking like a drill. She slowly lowered herself into the water, and water sprayed everywhere. The water impacted Luigi on the nose, knocking him over once again, and Fablooper stopped spinning at the sound of the cry Luigi made.

She held up two tentacles high into the air, and slammed them down where Luigi was, except the plumber rolled out of the way in the nick of time. Fablooper scowled, and started inhaling the air.

"This must be my chance to strike!" Luigi realized after a few moments, hurling some fireballs into Fablooper's mouth as he backed off from the strong inhalation source…Fablooper's mouth. The fireballs bounced off the ground, and landed inside Fablooper's mouth, causing her to cry out. Her tentacles started slamming random spots on the ground without even caring if she was hitting Luigi.

Fablooper then slammed down one tentacle that didn't move for a moment, and Luigi ground-pounded it instinctively, squishing it into the ground and causing it to shrivel up a bit, which put it out of action. Fablooper flung Luigi off and withdrew the tentacle.

"If I counted right, Fablooper has three tentacles. I only need to do put three more of those tentacles out of action…I hope." Luigi mumbled.

Fablooper slammed down a tentacle, but held the end up. Luigi tried jumping on it, but the tentacle grabbed Luigi, and flung him into the water. The Robotic Turtle surfed towards that spot to go rescue him.

. . .

Link jump-attacked one of the Scuttle Bugs, knocking it out of existence with a critical blow. A couple pounced him at the same time, and Link knocked them back with a spin-attack. One of them spat some string at Link, but Link heard it come out of the Scuttle Bug's mouth, and held up his shield, facing the string coming at him and deflecting it quite casually.

While he was looking smug, a different Scuttle Bug tackled him from behind, causing Link to yelp. The swordsman managed to wrestle into the better position, and stabbed the Scuttle Bug with his sword, making quick work of it. He got up, to find a Scuttle Bug all up in his face. Link quickly prepped his sword, and spun like a whirlwind, delivering a spin-attack to the Scuttle Bug, instantly defeating it.

There were still many more, hiding in the shadows, though, and the hisses from the bushes made sure Link knew the battle had not been won yet.

. . .

Fablooper spat a rock at Luigi, who ducked under it, and hurled a couple of fireballs at Fablooper. She swallowed them, and started slamming the ground randomly in rage. One of the tentacles paused after hitting the ground, and Luigi took that as a chance to ground-pound it, and he did that, causing it to shrivel up and Fablooper withdrew that tentacle, too.

Fablooper spat a fast rock at Luigi, which beaned him in the head and knocked him over…causing him to lose his power-up.

"Master, if you require ammunition to shoot into the mouth of this creature, I may aid you in that, if you wish. Perform the Butt-Stomp manoeuvre on my backside when you want to fire a missile at the enemy." The Robotic Turtle explained.

Luigi nodded, and when Fablooper swatted away the distracted Luigi. She held her two good tentacles in the air, and slammed them on the ground…causing shockwaves to form. Luigi jumped over the shockwave, and ground-pounded one of the two tentacles. He lunged at the other, but it moved out of the way. Luigi quickly used his Fire Flower, and jumped on a rock heading for him.

Fablooper reached her one good tentacle into the water, and fished out a crate with some seaweed on it. She dropped it above where Luigi was, and the plumber lunged out of the way, so the crate just plopped there. Luigi started to aim his fireball arm at Fablooper's mouth when she started charging up, but she covered it with her last good tentacle.

"Wait, I could ground-pound that tentacle by getting some extra height from that crate, there!" Luigi realized. He jumped on to the crate, and jumped above the tentacle. He ground-pounded it, and it shrivelled up too, causing Fablooper to cancel her charge to withdraw that tentacle.

Fablooper spat a barrage of rocks at Luigi, who ducked, dodged, lunged and weaved out of the way of. Fablooper spat some ink at Luigi, but he hopped over the blast and wasn't blinded. Fablooper decided to just go for the big moves and blew a massive bubble that formed around her. She started charging up her attack then, and Luigi started throwing fireballs. They didn't do a thing.

Fablooper was about to unleash the attack, when Luigi remembered the Robotic Turtle back there. He quickly ran over and ground-pounded it, and the Robotic Turtle shot out a missile, which broke the bubble shield. Luigi jumped to attention, and hurled a fireball in the nick of time, which caused Fablooper to stop her charge, but didn't seem to do much this time.

Luigi ran over to the Robotic Turtle again, and ground-pounded it, causing it to fire another missile at Fablooper, hitting her in the head. This knocked the crown off of her, and caused her to keel over. Luigi ran over to where she rested her head, and found there was a large red spot there which could be identified as her weakness. Luigi started jumping on it as she rose up straight again, and was still on her head when she was upright once more.

Luigi ground-pounded the bulge, and Fablooper screeched, sinking into the water. Luigi dived off her head before getting taken underwater, and landed on the Robotic Turtle.

"Ooh, I hate you Mario Brothers soooo much!" Junior whined as he started flying off on his Clown Car. "You're lucky I don't have time to mess with you!"

Luigi jumped on his Robotic Turtle, and gave chase to the fleeing prince who was heading for the forest.

. . .

Link sliced what may be the last of the Scuttle Bugs approaching him into pieces, and kicked the tree his friends were taken up. Mario, Kirby and Sonic fell down, still tied up in webs, but unscathed.

"They raided us for our items and one of them bit me so I lost my power-up!" Kirby wailed as Link felt something bite his arm. The flames on his sword extinguished, and a Scuttle Bug appeared to have done this. More of them came down, and surrounded the heroes.

"Ack, there's some left." Link said, and started spinning rapidly. He performed the Great Spin Attack, and dealt with the swarm of Scuttle Bugs with relative ease. He jump-attacked each of his tied up friends, only cutting the rope and not them, and they all high-fived each other.

"So, how about we get moving again?" Sonic asked as he started running ahead. "C'mon, let's go!"

The other three started coughing due to the dust cloud Sonic left behind, but recovered and darted after him.

**4-1**

Sonic struck all of the blocks ahead, snagging the Fire Flower that came out of one. Kirby had passed him because of this, and the puffball smashed down on the Koopa who was sitting on the grass with his hammer. The Koopa was smashed into his shell and was sent sliding across the grass and into some purple water, taking down a Scuttle Bug hanging on a tree with it.

The four heroes ran over to where the Koopa fell in, and saw its shell disintegrate slowly into nothing. It sank to the bottom, and as that happened, its eyes closed and it fainted.

"…note to self, DO NOT touch the purple water, too." Sonic said, writing it down in a notebook Tails gave him before he left. Once he finished writing, he hopped over the small gap to the next piece of land, and kicked the Koopa there into the purple water too. It met the same watery fate…and so did the Scuttle Bug nearby.

A trio of Scuttle Bugs dropped down from the trees, and Mario, quite skilfully jumped on the first one, bounced off of that and landed on the second, using that one to land on the third. Doing this sent all three of them to the ground, where Link took each one out by jump-attacking it twice.

Mario leaped from the high spot he landed on to a piece of land with a couple of Goombas mindlessly walking towards the edge to fall into the purple water. Mario stopped this by stepping on both of them instead.

"That's certainly better than falling into that water." Sonic said as he made a leap to the same spot of land, too. Mario bashed a block a Koopa was walking on, and it fell off the block and into the purple water.

Mario: This feels so cruel…

Link picked up the Fire Flower that had come out of the block he was dropped off on by Kirby, who flew him to the next bit of land, and used it. Kirby ran over to the Scuttle Bug that was in their way, and inhaled it. The Scuttle Bug stayed on its string.

"I think you need to inhale harder." Link suggested.

"POYO!" Kirby shouted, running a bit closer to the Scuttle Bug and madly inhaling it. The Scuttle Bug didn't stand a chance against such a strong inhalation, and flew into Kirby's mouth. He swallowed it, and became Scuttle Kirby. "Ooh, this power might be useful!"

Mario led the group across some careful jumps, and finished off any Koopas or Scuttle Bugs that got in their way. There were a couple guarding a Star Coin, but Sonic defeated them both and collected the Star Coin by performing an Action Chain. He landed safely on the next piece of land, and bicycle kicked a block a Koopa was on, sending it catapulting into a pair of Scuttle Bugs and a Koopa.

The hedgehog waited for his friends to catch up, before stopping before a giant blue creature wearing yellow goggles with red straps. It had a white underbelly, and was floating in the purple water. Ahead of it was a sea of purple water.

Mario and the others caught up to Sonic, and Mario gasped, causing the blue creature which may be a sea-dragon to look.

Mario: A Dorrie?

"Mario!" the Dorrie cried. "My brother's told me about you!"

Mario nodded.

"What?" Link asked.

Mario: This Dorrie is the sister of a friend of mine who helped me, Luigi, Yoshi and Wario to collect the 150 Power Stars scattered throughout the worlds accessed through Peach's Castle.

"So, what brings you to this neck of the woods?" the Dorrie asked.

"Uh, we're on this adventure to save Princess Peach…and we kinda need your help getting across this sea of purple water that seems to not be killing you. Why is that and can you help us?" Sonic asked. "By the way, what should we call you if you don't want to be called what you are?

"Of course! You being Mario's allies gives me even more reason to assist you! Hop on my back, and let's go! Also, the skin me and the rest of my kind have makes us immune to whatever this purple stuff is. That's why we can swim in it. By the way, call me Dora."

Mario jumped on Dora, and signalled for the others to do the same. Link, Kirby and Sonic hopped on, and Dora started to move. Kirby shot a web at a Scuttle Bug hanging around, and it fell off its string because of the weight of the web, into the purple water. Mario used a Fire Flower from a nearby block and hurled a fireball at a pair of Scuttle Bugs protecting a Star Coin.

Mario kept hurling fireballs at the dangling Scuttle Bugs ahead, and they soon reached the other side unscathed. Kirby forced out his power, and floated up to some coins, and hit the air between the two coins, causing a vine block to appear and a vine to come up.

"I'll be right back! Wait there!" Kirby said as he climbed the vine and found a pipe.

. . .

Kirby came out in front of a red flagpole. He jumped twice, making his way to a trio of Scuttle Bugs, all of which he sucked up and spat at the flagpole. Kirby floated to the flagpole, nabbing a 1-UP before walking on to find a green Toad House and a secret path through the forest that had a fortress at the end.

"Eh, nothing interesting here. I better hurry back."

. . .

"OK, we've waited 3 minutes. That's long enough. Let's get moving!" Sonic said, rushing Mario and Link onwards, only for Kirby to plop on his head as he did so.

"You weren't going to leave without me, right? You ARE pretty impatient." Kirby asked.

"Uh…yeah, of course. We were about to…uh…go look for you, yeah, go look for you!" Sonic scratched his head…unintentionally scratching Kirby off his head.

Mario hopped on to the donut blocks, and fried a Scuttle Bug nearby before hopping from block to block as he fired more fireballs at Scuttle Bugs to get to a thin spot of land. There was a Star Coin only accessible by jumping on to the donut blocks JUST above the deadly water. Mario dropped down, slowly walked from donut block to donut block, and hopped to the pair of donut blocks below a group of unbreakable blocks, nabbing the Star Coin there, and hopping forward to another trio of donut blocks before a bit of land.

Mario hurled some fireballs at a Scuttle Bug and some Goombas, and cleared the jump to even higher ground. He bounced off a Scuttle Bug ahead and nabbed the top of the flagpole, sliding down stylishly as he got a 1-UP. Soon, Link, Kirby and Sonic caught up, and they all lunged at the flagpole. Link got 800 as he fell off the high ground and couldn't get back up. Sonic got 8000 because of his amazing run-up, and Kirby got 1000 by holding on to Link's head.

"Wow, there's still a fair bit of forest left to go. I can't even see the fortress…" Link said, peering at the challenges ahead through some binoculars.

"Well, once again, let's get moving!" Sonic said as he put Kirby on his head. He grabbed Mario and Link's arms, and started running. He picked up speed, and ran deeper into the forest, dragging everyone with him at super-speed. Little did they know, something or someone was watching them, their eyes burning through the leaves. And they weren't just stalkers...

* * *

**Yeah, this chapter really is a bit... weird, ESPECIALLY that robotic turtle. ****But hey, what chapter isn't weird when written in the middle of the night, if I apparently haven't mentioned that already?****  
**


	16. The Wrath of the Unagi

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 16: The Wrath of the Unagi

Bowser Junior leaped out of a lake, soaking wet.

"There. Now, let's see those heroes survive those dangerous creatures I've enraged down there…I bet they won't last a minute with those weird things after 'em!" Junior chortled. "Now, I need to hurry back to the fortress. Can't be having the Princess unguarded. You never know when someone will try to steal back stolen people."

He laughed, and started to run back to the fortress.

. . .

"Was it really a good idea to climb up this loooooong vine from that block to get up into the skies to get past that massive body of water? We're getting really high and there's no mushrooms to land on yet." Sonic asked. Mario shrugged, nearly falling off, but Kirby helped him regain balance by pulling him off the tree altogether and flying him up.

"Well, it couldn't be too bad if we kept climbing." Mario said.

"Yeah, Mario's right. There's some mushrooms to land on above our heads and it looks like we're at the end of the vine, now." Sonic jumped off the vine and climbed on to the mushrooms above. Kirby hurled Mario on to the mushrooms, and flew up there himself. Link grabbed the tip of the mushroom with both hands, and dangled perilously above a large body of water. Link looked down; a pretty big mistake on his part.

"Ack…that's unnerving…" Link gulped. "Uh, guys…a little help?"

Mario grabbed Link's arms, and started pulling…but couldn't pull Link up.

"Can't you lift me up? I thought you were good at this stuff."

"You say I eat too much pasta…although how would you even know I eat pasta or "too much of it", anyway? You're the one who needs to lose some weight, here." Mario groaned as he finally threw Link into the air and hopefully on to the mushroom.

"That was the most I've probably ever heard you say at once." Link gasped as he peaked his ascent, and began falling, landing on Mario in the end.

"Yeah, you definitely need to lose some weight." Mario groaned.

"I'm getting a sick sense of déjà vu, as if something like this happened before…"

"I don't remember any of us crushing each other like this." Sonic said.

"Hello? We have a path ahead. Let's go and follow it over this lake!" Kirby reminded everyone.

"Oh yeah, let's get that over with."

**4-2**

Mario pounced at the flying green Paratroopa, ripping it from the skies and smashing it down on to a lower mushroom. It tried to give Mario a black eye, but Mario jumped away from it, nearly falling off the mushroom, and stomped it, in the face, causing it to hide in its shell. Mario picked up the shell, and hurled it off the mushroom like a disc.

"Since when were those shells light? Shouldn't you only be able to drop and pick them like pots?" Link asked.

"Maybe the Koopa was slim?" Kirby guessed, causing Link to burst into laughter as he watched Kirby eat a Fire Flower found from a block, transforming into Fire Kirby.

Sonic led the run, hopping on to a purple mushroom. It suddenly tilted to the right side, causing Sonic to slip down the mushroom and land on his face and a red mushroom.

"These mushrooms tilt, guys. Be careful." Sonic warned the others, a bit dazed. They all just avoided the purple mushroom altogether by leaping from a closer red mushroom and passing the purple mushroom to then land on the same mushroom Sonic was on.

Sonic got up, and jumped on to the purple mushroom ahead, bounding off of it quickly enough not to be effected by its tilting quality. He landed on the next one, performing a sliding tackle that knocked a Goomba off and helped him land on the lower purple mushroom. He took out the Goomba as he put his hand down to end the slide and flipped on to the green mushroom before him. Mario, Link and Kirby rolled in a big pile on to the green mushroom, and heard a shout.

"HEY! YOU! BLUE BUB!" a red Koopa yelled from a purple mushroom.

"Huh?" Sonic looked up at the Koopa. Link looked startled, Kirby and Mario were waiting in anticipation for the Koopa to speak again as they got up.

"YOU! ME! SHOWDOWN. NOW!" the Koopa jumped from the purple mushroom, and landed on the green mushroom with a great thud, knocking Mario, Link and Kirby off their feet. Sonic stood there, ready for anything. The Koopa came running at him, but Sonic gave it a good kick in the face, and the job seemed to have been done. The Koopa got up, and ran at Sonic again, getting a critical punch in the face. Sonic shook it off, and spiralled into the Koopa, curled up in a spiky ball of pain. This sent the Koopa flying off the green mushroom, probably never to be seen again.

"Well, at least they try?" Sonic shrugged after a short silence, then bouncing on to the purple mushroom and leaping towards a lower green mushroom. Mario bounced on to the higher red mushroom, stomped a Goomba on some blocks, and stamped a pair of blocks with such force that something came out of the bottom.

Whatever it was, it clonked Sonic on the head, knocking him down from his jump, but he landed on the purple mushroom either way. It started tipping him off, and Sonic scrambled to his feet, breaking into a sprint and flinging himself off the mushroom and flying into some ground, which knocked him down from his jump, and caused him to have to repeat what he just did.

Link pounced down at the 1-UP Mushroom that moved on to the green mushroom like it was a Big Gold Rupee, and chucked it in the air to swallow it proudly. The mushroom instead went to the side instead of down, and into Kirby's mouth. The puffball grinned, greatly satisfied by the delicious taste of the life-saving mushroom. Link's eyes watered as he watched Kirby chow down on the mushroom.

Mario came running by, hopping on to the purple mushroom and on to the next, and before they knew it, Mario had already reached the red mushroom at the other side. There was a Star Coin in the air, and Sonic came flying down, snatching it from the air, bouncing off the purple mushroom and colliding into Mario.

"Everyone seems to be landing on you these days, huh Mario?" Sonic said as he jumped off the plumber and checked a block, which revealed a Fire Flower that Mario took and stored away. Link bounced off Mario's head, and used a green Paratroopa as a footstool to jump-attack a red Koopa on a purple mushroom. He performed a Spin Attack to send it down the tilting mushroom, and hit the Star Coin below the purple mushroom normally.

It went flying up, and Link leaped at the Star Coin, nabbing it and rolling a bit on the green mushroom after the purple. He took out his Blazing Boomerang, and hurled it at the Paratroopa ahead. It was burned, and knocked into one after flying through a red ring. Red Coins appeared as Kirby, Mario and Sonic came running by. Mario collected the lower red coin, Kirby nabbed the higher four coins, and Sonic quickly made his way to the last three red coins at the back.

Sonic dodged a falling Fire Flower, and the others chowed down on a 1-UP Mushroom that fell on their heads. Link lunged himself at a red Koopa on a red mushroom below the purple ones, and smashed it off the mushroom, allowing it to fall into the depths of the sky. A red Paratroopa was just flying around happily above Link's head, but Kirby and his hammer came crashing down on the poor guy's head, sending him rocketing into the area below this area.

All four of the heroes met at a red mushroom a bit past some ground after moving some Koopas out of the way with the very persuasive power of a burning sword and hammer.

"So…who's going to go check that block over there?" Link asked. "If it's that annoying to get, then it should be worth the trouble."

Mario, Kirby and Sonic gazed at Link while a silence took over.

"You know, Kirby could just fly across and hit that block, you know." Link grumbled. Mario and Sonic looked at Kirby, and in turn, stared at blank air, as Kirby already hit the block and was waiting above it as a beanstalk sprouted from it into the skies.

"That…was quick." Sonic complimented as he, Mario and Link jumped towards the beanstalk and climbed up it with Kirby.

. . .

The beanstalk ended in the clouds, like they'd guess by now. Sonic pointed up after glancing up.

"Look! Star Coin!"

Mario sprung towards a block on a higher cloud, and bashed it. Another beanstalk came out, and Mario climbed up it to the Star Coin, jumping back down and following the others through the pipe back into the sky they were once in.

. . .

Mario and the others landed on that red mushroom they were on earlier, and continued jumping from mushroom to mushroom, soon reaching a line of purple mushrooms with a Koopa on one, and the flagpole in sight. Mario and Kirby had nabbed the 1-UP using the fourth mushroom as the boost they needed, Link got 8000 points, and Sonic…he was going to leap at the flagpole, but the purple mushroom tilted violently to the left.

Sonic yelped, the others looked once they slid down the pole. The Koopa from before was now muscular and heavy, which was what was making Sonic slide down to the left. They both landed on the third mushroom, and quickly slid off it, although Sonic managed to knock out the Koopa with an Axe Kick. Unfortunately, he still fell, shouting out as he did.

Mario and the others couldn't do anything to help the situation but try to head back down into the forest to try and find Sonic, so they entered the castle.

"Huh, I've never actually been in here before." Link stated. The room felt…circular.

"Well, prepare to be surprised." Mario said as he flicked pushed a button. The doors to the castle closed, and suddenly elevator music started playing. Kirby took out some popcorn, and munched it as he sat down and listened to the piece, familiar in Mario's case as the elevator took them back to the forest.

**4-3**

The elevator doors opened, and the group were now on an island surrounded by water, once again in the forest.

"Oh, no! Sonic must have fallen in the water if we can't see him out here." Link realized. "Come on, let's go hedgehog hunting."

Mario jumped into the pipe before them, and the other two followed.

. . .

They were now underwater, and an arrow pointed them in the only direction they could go.

"Hm, if it ever occurred to anyone, WHAT condition would Sonic be in if we found him in here, anyway?" Kirby asked.

"Unconscious?" Mario guessed.

"Dead?" Link guessed. "But hey, either way, if we find him, at least we know how he is.

Mario bashed a few blocks, nabbing some coins, and Link collected all of the contents from a later trio of blocks, the Fire Flower of which he found, he ended up storing away. Mario hurled some fireballs at the Cheep Cheep ahead, and suddenly looked terrified, diving to the seabed and ducking.

"Uh…" Link was startled by Mario's movements, only then seeing the monstrous creature entering his line of sight. It roared, its white, saw-blade teeth grinning devilishly at his new target in front of him. It was so menacing, looking at it hurt a bit inside.

If looks could kill, Link would be dead ten times over before he even knew what he was staring at. The creature chomped down on the blocks, coins, bubbles, seaweed, coral, Cheep Cheeps and even the seabed without breaking a sweat…not that you'd notice underwater.

Kirby squirted a spray of water at Link, knocking him into the seabed, out of danger. Kirby then spiraled into the seabed just before the Mega Unagi sank his teeth into what he thought was a defenseless, pink, delicious morsel of a lunch. It looked a bit disappointed, and swam away into the background.

"Oh, so THAT'S how that thing snuck up on us. Using the background to sneak up on us…Bowser could learn from that thing." Link growled.

"Gee, talk about grateful." Kirby muttered as he dodged an incoming Cheep Cheep speeding at the group. Mario, who was behind that very Cheep Cheep, ducking on the seabed checked to see if it was safe, and at the new knowledge, he started swimming forward again.

The Cheep Cheep bashed Link in the noggin like a rock to a bird, and it knocked the fire out of him…literally. Link spun a bit, recovered, and started chasing after Mario and Kirby who had left him behind.

"These water areas sure are a shore, right, right?" Link nudged Mario, his face not looking any closer to laughing. Kirby broke into a fit of laughter, though. "Only now do I realize I should have used that one during our adventures on the beach. Darn it."

Mario suddenly dived and performed a U-turn under the risen seabed, nabbing a Star Coin and swimming back to the others while taking down the Cheep Cheep who were zooming at him.

"Sheesh, these fish have it out for us. Either that, or they finally decided we're threats." Link said.

"Well, we did kill their master. Maybe that was the wake-up call." Kirby answered. "Oh, look. Another one of those large chompy-chomp things are coming in…from the foreground this time. They're really busting out all the tricks to stop us."

Another Mega Unagi was chomping his way towards the trio.

"SPLIT!" Link shouted, and they all dispersed. Kirby swam up, inhaling an Unagi hiding in a cavern and transforming into Unagi Kirby. Link was swimming away from the terrifying creature, crying out like a scared little girl.

"I DO NOT WANT TO BE STUCK INSIDE AN AQUATIC CREATURE'S STOMACH AGAIN! NEVER AGAIN!" Link cried, smashing into the seabed and falling into the depths, avoiding danger, though as he was dropping deeper, dazed.

Mario simply swam over the simple beast since he figured it could hardly move up or down. He completely missed a Red Ring, however.

"Where's Link?" Kirby asked as he met up with Mario again by a block. The plumber shrugged as Link shot out of the depths of the area.

"Head right! Head right!" Link wailed, swimming to the right only to lock eyes with another one of the Mega Unagis. Mario and Kirby looked down, to see a Mega Unagi coming straight for their faces. They swam out of the way, not needing to process a solution to the problem.

But now they were in another, considering they were right in front of the very beast that was eyeing Link with a nasty glare that could easily be read as _I will eat your face, and that's all there' to it. _Link looked a bit startled once he read the message the monster's eyes were sending him. That was indication enough for the beast to attack. The heroes swam down between some bits of rock, and waited it out.

The safety zone actually had a Star Coin in it, so Link swam deeper to grab it, but he was suddenly chomped on by two nasty little Unagis once he collected it. Kirby gave them a taste of their own medicine with his newly gained razor-sharp teeth, and freed Link the same way he was caught…although he had once again lost his fire from the incident after obtaining it again via his own Fire Flower.

"I hope I can get a new outfit once this adventure's over. I think my tunic is worn out now."

"Didn't you tell me you had a blue and red outfit on you at all times, not to mention a train outfit?"

"Oh yeah, I can use those instead. But I guess there's no harm in still wearing these.

They swam out of the spot, and Mario darted to a ?-Switch, which was hit with great haste. He started trying to enter the pipes spewing air, and soon found a passage in a green one.

This led to him getting blown into a Star Coin due to the currents, and even ending up finding a Star Coin once he escaped the painful grips of the Unagi waiting near the coin which had air spewed at it from a red pipe. Mario grabbed the coin, and was blown away from the red pipe. He left the small area through the same green pipe, only to have to push a pink thing that was blocking his way out.

"Oh, there's the sneaky plumber." Link said, all up in Mario's face now. "Hiding in that pipe while that scary thing came out to rip me to shreds. COMPENSATE ME!"

Mario looked startled, and chucked the first thing he found in his pocket to push Link away from him. That thing happened to be a Fire Flower, which ironically ended up compensating him in the long run.

A Cheep Cheep smashed into Mario's face as soon as he tried swimming again, knocking him down and the fire out of him.

Mario punched the fish away, and led Link and Kirby onwards, dodging the chomping Unagi ahead and letting Kirby loose on the poor thing. Link chucked a bomb in the mouth of the Mega Unagi they had encountered, and milliseconds before it bit into the swordsman who was right before him, an explosion occurred in the beast's mouth, stunning it for a few seconds.

"Huh? That's ALL a bomb would do to that thing? Just stun it? Not even hurt it?" Link looked crestfallen as he hacked his way through the Unagi instead of going under and over. He was at the pipe, and made sushi out of the Cheep Cheep waiting near it for a sneak ambush.

Mario and Kirby soon came, detailing how long the Unagi was actually stunned for…and that was exactly 9 seconds. Link never looked more disappointed.

"Never before have bombs failed me like this…" Link mumbled as he went up the pipe. Kirby followed. Then there was mumbling behind the pipe. Mario checked…and gasped. Sonic was there, sleeping like a log. Mario grabbed him, tugged him below the pipe, and swam up with all his might.

. . .

He shot out of the pipe, Sonic in his grip. Link had already gotten 4000 Points, Kirby a 1-UP. Mario jumped up the ledges, kicked a Goomba off the top, and jumped down, Sonic in hand. He carried the hedgehog, gaining 100 Points due to having to drag around a tired body, slid down and walked towards Link and Kirby, who were gaping at him in shock.

Mario dropped Sonic before them, pulled out a 1-UP, and chucked it in his mouth. Sonic sprung to his feet, and gave a thumbs-up.

"It wakes up people instantly, no matter the condition." Mario explained.

"So, what did I miss?"

"Nothing much. Just some enormous fish in some water area."

Kirby randomly ditched his power-up.

"So, I think we're near the fortress now. A little more and we'll be in there in no time. Let's go!" Kirby led the march onwards, only to get taken away from a web. Mario, Sonic and Link were looking at where Kirby was in shock. Then, as suddenly as before, a web snatched Sonic.

"Not again!" Sonic cried as he disappeared into the trees. Mario and Link gasped, and once again, a web snatched Mario, and he was taken into the trees. Link saw a web come for him, and lunged out of the way. He did another barrel roll, dodging a few more webs, and he was at the fortress.

Somehow, he'd have to save the others and not get tangled in a mess himself. Somehow…


	17. Maestro of the Woods

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 17: Maestro of the Woods

**4-Fortress**

Link crossed the bridge immediately after the door, and looked down.

"Lava…" Link groaned, jumping up and smashing the Dry Bones on the ledge above with his sword. The walking pile of bones collapsed into just an ordinary pile of bones, and Link jumped up to the next ledge when some moving gray blocks withdrew into the walls. He jumped when the first row came at him, and did the same with the second.

The third scraped his foot, and the fourth was simple. The fifth knocked him over, yet he landed on it safely anyway. Link quickly got up and jumped to some blocks in the safe area above before they withdrew again.

He raided the block, used the Fire Flower, and jumped over to the door on the other side, entering. He felt the room slowly get warmer, and stopped to think about why. Before he knew it, lava was overflowing on to the platform he was on. Link back-flipped, and landed on safe ground. The lava kept going up.

"Oh, boy. Forget the frying pan, I'm in the oven!" Link cried, jumping to the climbing fence and scrambling up it, ignoring the Amps and the flip-pads on the fence. He reached the top quite quickly, and jumped to the spot to the right, hitting the two blocks for a coin and another Fire Flower, which was stored. The lava suddenly sped up, and Link panicked, jumping on to the blocks and using them to skip some fences and grab a later one.

Link clambered up the next fence, and leaped to the higher fence. Link jumped on to a higher one, barely grabbing the coins, and landed on a higher fence next to some solid ground. He leaped to the ground, and ran past a moving stone which nearly squished him. He could feel the heat burn him even as he had a good lead against the lava.

There before him was a Star Coin, sparkling in the ravaging heat. He picked it up, and stored it away. The lava was high on his heels at this point, so he'd have to seriously get moving again. Link leaped for the fence above, and snatched it by the nail. He grabbed a nearby nail with his other hand, and slowly brought himself up high enough to grab the fence. He started climbing, ignoring the coins and hurrying to the top of that particular fence.

He pushed down on the fence, and leap-frogged his way up to the fence above in a spurt of movements. He climbed to the spot where two stones met, and waited for them to move out of the way so he could proceed. Soon enough, they did, and he jumped up to the fence above. He saw another glimmering coin above his head, and slowly went out of his way to snatch that Star Coin from the air above.

A nearby Amp saw his ascent start coming to a stop, and radiated its electrical energy even more, zapping Link and causing him to drop the Star Coin. He saw it fall on to the stones below, and he fell down, black from the zapping, right next to the Star Coin.

"That was certainly a shock…" Link smirked, getting up and grabbing the Star Coin before the stones said otherwise. He jumped back on to the fence, and climbed. Link moved to the left, the other way this time, and leaped to the next fence. Link stormed up it, and noticed some more safe-ground next to him. He jumped on to the ground, and stopped to catch a breather.

"Woo…I think I'm safe now…maybe." Link panted, exhausted from the rapid climbing. There was bubbling heard. Link peeked over the side he had just jumped here from, to see lava bubbling. And it was close. "Hey, stop bubbling! You're ruining my break!"

To his surprise and pleasing, the lava stopped bubbling once he yelled those words. He was about to stop risking his life by not continuing or peeking over the edge when a pillar of lava shot out of the rising lava, causing Link to scream and dive away, past a spiked stone and into a block, knocking a Fire Flower out of it, which landed in Link's bag.

As Link recovered his possibly-not-very-functional brain, the lava had hit the bottom of some ground. This left a very noticeable burn mark there, in the shape of a circle. Link shook his head, waking up the brain he had just recovered, and dived past another spiked stone. Link jumped up to a high spot, and on to a fence above. He climbed to the left, side-spinning off the fence and clonking a Dry Bones on the head, causing it to topple into a pile of bones.

Link dizzily stumbled on to a fence ahead, and climbed up it. He jumped past a stone when it withdrew into the wall, and repeated this for another, and another. He could see something shining past a stone, but couldn't make it out. The sparkle was yellow, so Link assumed it was a Star Coin. He jumped on to the stone, and crawled under the low ceiling it was below, entering the area with the Star Coin.

He jumped up, grabbed the Coin, and slid down the wall ahead, wall-jumping off it in time to land on the same stone again, and he crawled out to the other side again. He gripped the fence nearby, and climbed up it, jumping to some ground to the right. He back-flipped through a Red Ring, into a Red Coin and on to a fence which he latched on to as if it was second-nature to him.

Link jumped on to a fence above, managing to grab the two Red Coins to the left of it without having to let go of the fence entirely. Link jumped up to the fence above, repeating what he had just done with this fence, and as a result, nabbed the next two Red Coins. He soared up this fence, and leaped from it, grabbing two more Red Coins in mid-air, making the total seven so far. He landed before a Red Coin on some safe-ground, and lunged at it.

"I might actually do it this time!" Link cheered, diving into the Red Coin, grabbing it as he cheered. "Woo!"

Link could see the Fire Flower above his head about to drop on to him any moment now for a brief moment as he rolled. But he ended up rolling into a wall, and dropping the Red Coin he was gripping so tightly. It flew through the air as Link cried out in sadness, helpless to stop the now inevitable. Then the second it touched the ground, it disappeared, just like that.

Link's eyes watered as he looked up to see the Fire Flower was also gone. He jumped over to the door, only to realize the lava was about to get him now. He yelped as it was about to leak on to the very ground he was on, when it just stopped. Link was shocked by this sudden turn of events.

All the lava started to bubble, and lava pillars shot out of the lava at every possible spot. All Link could see apart from lava shooting out of the lava was the door.

_GO._

Link jumped when he heard something or someone boom those words in a deep voice. He looked around, assured he was only imagining it, and when he felt like he had looked around enough, ran into the door ahead, falling backwards from the impact, as it was currently closed. Link got up, opened the door this time, walked back a bit, and started sprinting towards the door. Link ran into the door, and heard it close as he fell through a hole in the passageway he was running through.

. . .

"Heh. Lonely? Like a certain kid here?" a familiar voice chuckled.

Link sat up, and groaned. Bowser Junior. Link jumped to his feet, and pulled out his sword. The kid was grinning.

"That wasn't very funny." Link criticized. "Your humour is moderately bad, and it was lacking timing. I didn't even realize that was a joke until I saw you grinning. Your jokes need A LOTTA work."

"But it's true, isn't it? You're lonely. Your friends were plucked from the ground like seeds by a chicken!" Junior laughed, showing Link an object familiar to him. "Nearly the same way I plucked THIS from the ground when I knocked you over earlier!"

It was a Bow…with a Quiver full of Arrows.

"My Bow 'n Arrows! Gimmie!" Link ran at Junior, only to take an arrow to the head, which knocked him backwards. "Oh, wow. You're good…for a pesky kid."

"Like you could do better." Junior scoffed smugly.

"Oh, I CAN."

"Can you?"

"Mmm-hmm."

"Mmm-hmm?"

"Mmm-hmm."

"OK, I'll give ya a shot. But ONLY once." Junior chucked Link the Bow and Arrows, and he caught them, putting them on and aiming at Junior in a flurry of movements.

"GOTCHA!" Link laughed, firing an arrow at Junior. He leaped over the shot, and pulled out a wand.

"Not so fast!" Junior yelled, pointing the wand at Link, who burst into laughter.

"What are you gonna do? Poke me to death with it?" He asked, rolling on the floor and laughing his head off.

Junior held up the wand, and chanted something. Suddenly, a force turned the Bow Link was holding purple, and it slowly ascended out of Link's hand into the air, and split into two different Bows, one an evil blue, one green. The blue fell into Junior's hands, likewise the green did with Link.

"I forgot to do that." Junior admitted, aiming an Arrow at Link. He fired, and the arrow set on fire and blazed towards Link's face. He dived out of the way, put his Bow away, and tried approaching Junior for some close-combat. He rolled out of the way of a blast of fire, and dodged a few more waves of speeding arrows.

Link tried jump-attacking Junior when he got close enough, but the kid jumped out of the way and would've smashed his face in with his tail if Link didn't duck-walk. The swordsman chucked a bomb at Junior's face, but the Koopa wacked the bomb back at him with his tail. Link held up his shield, and the bomb exploded on to it, causing Link to nearly skid off the platform.

Junior smirked, and pulled out an evil blue bomb.

"I have everything you have, but better." He explained smugly as he chucked it.

"What kind of sick joke is this?!" Link gasped, running towards the bomb, in turn, actually running away from the bomb as it soared over his head and exploded. Link was sent rolling into Junior, and squashed him against the wall past the end of the platform they were battling on.

Link hurled the kid back on to the platform, jumped off the wall, using it as a boost, and tried to perform a Fatal Blow…but he ended up getting his sword stuck in the ground as Junior was already back on his feet. He withdrew into his shell, and tossed himself at Link. A sword poked of the shell's insides, but it was an evil blue, like the bombs and Bow. Unfortunately for Link, this spinning shell of doom was not complete, for a blue bomb somehow found its way on to the shell.

"Looks like it's a spinning shell of boom, then!" Link laughed, walking to the side. Junior kept going and exploded into the wall.

Once the smoke cleared, it was evident that Junior had left the Tower from the shell-shaped hole in the wall with a clear view of the forest below.

"Looks like I found the hole in this tower's defenses!" Link chuckled, jumping through the hole and down back into the forest, although that wasn't a very wise move, as Link smashed into a tree after losing his contact with the wall, and was flung over to some new place.

**4-4**

He collided into a pair of blocks, and fell to the ground, winded. Just then, as he sat up, he noticed some Scuttle Bugs scuttling away into the distance, and they were carrying stuff…however, at the current spot Link was, he couldn't make out what exactly they were. He just hoped for the best, and they were what he thought they were.

Link jumped to his feet, and bounced off a Goomba that was getting too close to comfort. He then sprung on to a sleeping Wiggler, and used it to bash a block above his head. A Fire Flower flipped out of the block, and Link caught it, powering up. He burned a red Koopa ahead with his sword, and was knocked over by an angry Wiggler. It rapidly trampled him, then stormed off, fuming with rage.

"Ouch…that hurt."

Link de-pancaked himself, and carefully dodged a Wiggler ahead by using some blocks, not wanting a repetition of what just happened. He then jumped to where a sleeping Wiggler was, and jumped over it and through a Red Ring. 8 red coins appeared in an octagon shape above the Wiggler.

Link quietly hurled his boomerang in an arc, and collected the bottom four coins. He jumped back over, and nabbed the left remaining two, and hurled his boomerang to get the last two, but on its way back, it clonked the Wiggler in the head, and the sleepy guy turned all red. A Red Coin was even on its head due to the collision. Link tried to lull the Wiggler to sleep with his voice, but that just seemed to wake it up…on the WRONG side of the bed. The Wiggler was losing its patience, and was a dark red now, eyes with no pupils and just the white rage.

Link pulled out a harp, and strummed it gently with his boomerang. Considering it was reinforced with metal at this point, that wasn't wise.

"Oops, I guess heavy metal won't lull this guy to sleep." Link laughed quietly, putting away the broken harp. He then whipped out an ocarina, and started playing it. The Wiggler was slowly getting sleepy, but then he was off-key for a split second, and that snapped the Wiggler awake, and it stamped the ground.

Link put away the ocarina, and pulled out a trumpet. He played a marching theme, but that was horribly bad for him, as the Wiggler couldn't take any more, and charged at Link. He jumped over the Wiggler, and pulled out a mini-piano. He tried playing a lullaby, but he did that on the deep side of it, and that failed, as well.

He jumped over the Wiggler again, and tried using a kind of pipe to do the job, except he blew too deeply, and most Wigglers don't tend to like people who breathe on them heavily. Link was out of instruments, so he checked the ground for anything to use. There was a single leaf.

"Maybe this'll get you to leaf me alone." Link smirked, and leaf-whistled. That seemed to calm just about everything around him, and he even saw a hawk flying towards him. It nearly took his head off, but it still worked with the Wiggler. Link approached it to claim his Red Coin, but it had disappeared…along with the other 7 he had on his body.

Link groaned loudly, waking up the Wiggler, and it got angry. Link just jumped away as fast as he could, but the recklessness he did that with caused him to fall down a hole and into a secret area…with a Wiggler sleeping over a Star Coin. Link tip-toed to the Wiggler, and grabbed the Star Coin from under it. He looked up. It was still sleeping.

He slipped it away. Sleeping. He tip-toed away, and in haste, accidentally stepped on a twig. Link looked. It was snoring the day away.

"Doesn't that usually wake things up when you don't want them to?" Link asked himself aloud, suddenly rammed by the Wiggler into a wall above a pit, and bounced off that to rebound into another wall to rebound back into the first wall, which sent him out of the secret area and on to a red Koopa who was napping in its shell. Link ate the Fire Flower he had, and got up again, kicking the shell away into a Wiggler ahead, and knocking it off some Donut Blocks.

Link ran after the shell, and watched it go into the pit the Wiggler fell in. He quickly sprinted across the Donut Blocks before he fell, too, and jumped towards safe ground. He walked over to a slot block, and ended up getting a Blue Shell. He used it, and didn't gain a shell.

"What? No shell? How shellfish." Link grinned. "Oh, did something hit me?"

Link swirled round, and saw nothing but a dead end. He jumped on to a pair of blocks and climbed up the gap in the ceiling, into a new area. He jumped out on to some firm ground. He saw a Star Coin high up, and swiped it with his boomerang, which had created a whirlwind that travelled with the boomerang. Link glanced at his boomerang once he caught it.

The Boomerang had transformed…it was a leaf-green colour, and seemed to be re-enforced with steel even further, yet its speed was increased, and its weight didn't change.

"Nice! That Shell did do stuff!" Link realized, jumping over a nearby Koopa and landing before a slope with some marching enemies. They were getting yelled at by a red Koopa in a soldier's uniform.

"COME ON, SISSIES! MOVE YOUR LAZY LEGS!" General Koopa barked. "YA DON'T WANT TO UPSET THE KING, DO YOU?!"

"NO, SIR!"

"THAT'S WHY YOU NEED TO LEARN SOME DEFENSIVE MANUEVERS!" General Koopa yelled, blasting the area in front of him with spit. "YOU BETTER HAVE BEEN PAYING ATTENTION THIS MORNING! NOW, MARCH!"

"YES, SIR!"

Link charged at the General, and he suddenly pointed at Link sharply, causing him to skid to a stop, startled by such fierce pointing.

"I gotta give you points for that." Link laughed.

"DO WE TOLERATE BAD PUNS, MY FELLOW GOOMBAS?!"

"NO, SIR!"

"WHAT DO WE DO TO THOSE WHO MAKE BAD PUNS, MY FELLOW GOOMBAS?!"

"WE KNOCK 'EM OUT AND TIE 'EM UP!" the Goombas responded. "THEN WE HAUL 'EM OVER TO KING BOWSER, AND LET INJUSTICE BE SERVED!"

"THAT'S RIGHT, LADS! NOW SICK HIM, AND SHOW HIM THE RESULTS OF YOUR COMBAT TRAINING!" the General ordered.

He pulled out his Shield, which seemed to have turned into a Blue Shell, although still donning the usual Hylian mark. "Yeah…I like these changes!"

He put the Shield away, and hacked at the Goombas, although they ducked and dodged, then kicked and chomped at Link. One of them did a jumping side-kick, knocking Link into a wall. The other head-butt Link in the face. That gave probably gave him a black eye.

Link took out a bomb, and chucked it. The Goombas dived out of the way, but the General was too busy mumbling something to himself, and it knocked him into his shell.

"That was a blast!" Link burst into laughter. "It certainly got me some explosive results!"

Link continued to laugh, not noticing the Goombas leering at him. They continued to maul him until the combined force of the Goombas pinned him down, the swordsman still laughing.

"So, what are we gonna do with him, boss?"

"We'll shove him down one of those pipes, THAT'S WHAT!" General Koopa grinned devilishly. "Hopefully we pick a nasty."

One of the Goombas saw the scowl Link was giving them, and kicked him in the face, knocking his lights out.

. . .

They were on a few thin pipes, about to shove Link down one now that they cleared it of Wigglers. General Koopa put on some paper gloves, grabbed Link, and scrunched him up like a discarded piece of paper. He shoved him into the pipe closest to where they fought Link, and marched off.

"I can't believe a pair of Goombas knocked me out. Hopefully no one saw that, or ever will hear of this." Link mumbled. "And guessing my current state, I paid the price for getting in a scrap."

Link chuckled, and popped out of the pipe after some effort. He used that willpower that did the thing earlier to un-scrunch himself, and soon was back to his normal self.

Link grabbed the Star Coin near a pit with his boomerang, and jumped onwards.

"If I ever see those guys again, they're gonna pay." Link growled, bouncing off a green Paratroopa, and bouncing down a vertical line of them, landing before a yellow pipe.

He walked through it, and saw the flag. He peered over the edge of the high ground he was on. It was safe to drop, but then he might lose his chance of a 1-UP. He stepped back, then started to run, but was pushed, falling to the lower ground. Link dusted himself off, and looked up. A Wiggler was snickering as it stared at him.

Link shook his fist, and grumbled off to the flagpole, ending up with 100 Points, not even bothering. He continued to walk through the forest, looking about.

"It looks like I lost those Scuttle Bugs…darn it." Link moaned, stopping to gasp. "Just my luck. I've got to hunt them down again… Oh, well, I better get this over w-"

There was a rustle in the trees. Link looked up. There was a line of web shooting towards him. Link side-flipped out of the way, and cut up another incoming string. He picked up a rock, and hurled it at the trees. A blue Scuttle Bug came raining down, Sonic on top. It hissed at Link, getting up, and jumping away, still in possession of its prey. A whole swarm of them followed the leader. In the stampede, Link saw traces of red and pink. That was good news...hopefully. The bugs seemed to be heading for a house on the other side of the poisonous lake ahead.

"Looks like I know where I'm going.

Link ran after the swarm, towards the lake.


	18. Luigi's Ghost House

**You know, this whole Scuttle Bug thing is something that actually wasn't in the old story either. World 4 has quite a bit of new content. I also have some very interesting stuff for World 7, too. It's always them secret worlds that get the special treatment.**

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 18: Luigi's Ghost House

**4-A**

Link charged blindly, and tripped over a short increase in the land height. A Goomba burst into laughter when it witnessed this, and was thoroughly slashed. Very thoroughly. Link was the one laughing as he approached a vine he had to use to get to the other side. As he approached it, a Goomba in a diver suit came leaping out of the toxic water. Link yelped, and bashed it away with his shield.

"Seriously, that guy really made a SPLASH to begin this area!" Link grinned, a bit worried on the inside as he jumped at the vine. He swung across it, flew over some blocks, bounced off a Goomba, hand-stood on and jumped off a Diver Goomba who had jumped out of the toxic water, kicked a Koopa in his ascent, knocking it on its back, and landing before it.

"I know this sounds a bit shellfish, but I'll be needing your shell." Link chuckled, extracting the knocked out Koopa from his shell and hurling the poor guy back to where Link was at the start of the area. He picked up the shell and surfed across the toxic water instead of swinging across three vines like he was supposed to. The shell broke when it smashed into some land, and Link landed on a rotating wheel that moved.

It suddenly started spinning him towards toxic water, so Link jumped to his feet, and jumped on to the platform behind him. He then repeated this, jumping to the one behind him if he felt he was in danger until he made it to the other side. There, there was another one of those wheels, and after shooting a Red Koopa with his Bow and Arrow (after missing plethora of times), it cried out, and spiraled into the toxic water quite dramatically… splashing the water, too.

Link did exactly what he did with the other wheel, and successfully made it to the other side. There, there were a trio of Koopas. They started beating down on him.

"WHY'D YOU SHOOT KOOPAH? HE ONLY STARED AT YA, AND YOU THOUGHT YOU SHOULD KILL HIM FOR THAT?! DISPICABLE!" were the shouts that ensued during this beating. He resorted to screaming to startle them briefly, threw a rock into the toxic water to distract them during their closing of the eyes and covering of the ears, then took out his Shell Shield. He tried covering it over him, and he suddenly found himself inside the shell, nice and safe.

"That's actually pretty cool. I might have to take this home as a souvenir." Link admitted. "Now, let's try walking."

"WHERE'D HE GO?! HE DROPPED A SHELL! HUH?! WHAT HAPPENED?! WHAT WAS THAT SPLASH?" the Koopas shouted, confused, looking about everywhere.

Link started crawling slowly, eventually landing on a wheel. He yelped, and slipped out of his Shell Shield, jumping on to the platform ahead of him after grabbing his shield and putting it away. He kicked a Paratroopa in the face when it tried to cross-chop him, and watched it fly into a wall and disintegrate as it sank in the toxic water.

Link jumped on top of the wall the Paratroopa flew into, and hopped on to another rotating wheel. He jumped from it on to a pair of Paratroopas, and snagged a Star Coin halfway through his bouncing. He landed on some more land, and used a Paratroopa to get up to a vine to swing up to a secret area with a pipe which Link entered.

. . .

Link was in the underground now, and jumped up on to a rectangle of brick-blocks, kicking a Red Koopa away in his shell before stomping a P-Switch that turned brick-blocks into coins, and vice versa. Link fell on to the Star Coin, and took it with him as he ignored the Koopas who were freed from the rectangular jail get mowed down by the out-of-control shell and jumped in a pipe, leaving the area.

. . .

Link popped out of the pipe, and kicked away a Red Koopa who tried charging him. Link hopped on to the higher of two pipes, and blocked it with his shield when he saw a Piranha Plant shooting out from the depths of the pipe to bite him. He heard a clonk, jumped when he felt the impact and jumped to a vine which he swung across, spun to stop himself in mid-air, and did a downward sword-attack into the yellow pipe he saw a glimmer come out of behind a Piranha Plant.

The sword attack literally ripped the plant to pieces and brought it down with him. It disappeared with a poof, and Link ducked under a nearby Piranha Plant's bite before hacking it away into nothingness. He then bombed the one to his right, and proceeded to check out what was so radiant. It was a Star Coin, obviously, and Link grabbed it (and several coins below it) with his upgraded boomerang.

Link left through the yellow pipe, instead of mixing it up and trying the adjacent green pipes. Link jumped out of the pipe, and landed before the pipe that led him to the flagpole. Link swung on the vine hanging on the upside-down L-shaped land mass, and landed on a pair of wooden blocks. Link dived from there, and got 8000 Points. He slid down, and walked onwards. There was a house ahead.

A stampeding stampede of Scuttle Bugs (one of them carrying a green guy) mowed Link down and entered the house. Link followed.

**4-Ghost House**

"HELP ME!" the green guy called as the Scuttle Bugs carried him into a door ahead.

"Well, I know what I'm doing." Link said, jumping from platform to platform while dodging the Boos. He made it to the door, but a Boo was floating near it. Link glared at it, and the Boo covered her face like every other Boo would. Link approached it. The Boo started shivering. Link poked the Boo.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" the Boo cried, flying away. Link jumped from this, but proceeded to open the door, walking through it.

. . .

Link came out into a room with just a ?-Switch on a floating platform. He stomped the switch, and a bunch of Scuttle Bugs came down, along with four blocks on strings. The green guy fell down, too. Link hacked away at the Scuttle Bugs, defeating them, and noticed the guy now clinging one of the four blocks.

Scuttle Bugs burst into the room, and Link yelped, grabbing one of the blocks as they started shooting back up to where they came up from.

. . .

"Hey, wake up!" a voice called. Link opened his eyes to see the green guy staring him in the face. "Oh, you're OK. Now I'm not alone here."

"You're Luigi, aren't ya?" Link asked. "Didn't you fall back when Mario and I faced Bowser?"

"Well, I ended up in a tomb, met Bowser Junior, and chased him in here." Luigi explained. "Well, into the forest at least. The Scuttle Bugs did the rest. It's almost as if they want me to suffer in here. Oh, and I found this shiny coin up there."

Luigi pointed up to a corner with a spoon-like object sticking out, practically telling someone to jump on it. Link nodded.

"Anyway, so, where are you headed? And why was Mario being carried by those Scuttle Bugs?" Luigi asked.

"Well, I guess you saw Sonic and Kirby, too, then. They were captured earlier. I'm trying to catch those fast bugs." Link said. "I guess I'm heading for the castle in this forest while trying to find the others."

"Huh, I guess we should get moving, then. I'd like to get out of here, if you ask me." Luigi said. "Seeing as this place is haunted…"

Link nodded, and jumped on the spoon object. Luigi grabbed the spoon as it did a half spin, throwing them both off on the other side of the wall.

"Now, that was cool." Link said as he ran to a platform below a few. He jumped up them, and saw a large puffy Boo. Luigi saw it, and screamed. The Boo burst into laughter, losing all the air it was holding up. It started sucking up air as Link ran for a red switch now the Boo wasn't blocking it. He hit it, and red blocks appeared, allowing them to enter a door. Luigi jumped to the door, and entered it in fear. Link skidded under the Boo, and jumped on to the red blocks, entering the door just in time.

. . .

Link came out to see Luigi waiting in a corner for Link to come.

"Phew, I thought you left me!" Luigi sighed in relief. "To think, being left here all alone again. I'd die of fear!"

Link stepped on a red switch as Luigi continued cowering at the large puffy Boo. He saw the wall-jumpable area, and started wall-jumping. Link followed suit, to find this was just for a Star Coin. They groaned, and jumped down the opening in the corner. Link dragged Luigi to the other side with the puffy Boo as it blew out air to hit them through propulsion.

"There's something up there. Have you got a Mini Mushroom?" Link asked, throwing a bomb in the Boo's mouth as it started sucking up air again.

"Y-Yeah…" Luigi said, using the mushroom on Link. He started wall-jumping with the incredibly long jumps he was gifted with in this state, and soon found a secret section. He landed on the right side when a platform showed itself, and jumped up into a secret passage. He ran through it, and found a door. He looked up to see a Star Coin, and wall-jumped up to it. He dropped back down, and went through the door.

He saw the flagpole, got 4000 Points from it, and saw the path led him to a cannon, and realized he'd leave everyone behind if he jumped in it, and he didn't like cannons, anyway, so entered the mansion again and found Luigi in a corner near where a green pipe was. Link used a Fire Flower he had on him to return to normal size.

"I had to run. The Boo was after me! I had to use the red switch to get out of there!" Luigi cried, waving his hands about for emphasis. Link nodded, and they jumped up a few platforms and they found a door there.

"It's a trap, isn't it?" Link asked.

"I went through the door earlier, it brought me back to the Boo, so I got back here in a haste!" Luigi explained. Link pointed at the trio of blocks with one above the three, and jumped on the high one. He hopped up to what Luigi thought was the ceiling, and told Luigi to come up there. He did so, and saw the door that was up there.

"The exit!" Luigi cheered, running to the door, and leaving the Ghost House. He cheered as he sprinted out, ran to the flagpole, jumped over it in his joy, and ran into the lush green forest again, only to get separated from Link again. Link face-palmed at this.

"Looks like he's on his own again… though at least he got out." Link shrugged as he left the Ghost House and got 2000 on the flagpole. He strolled casually onwards. "Now, the matter of actually finding my friends…"

A swarm of Scuttle Bugs ran by him.

"Figures. Looks like they ran into that pipe. Time to tail them!" Link ran into the pipe, hoping to finally get his friends back this time...

* * *

**Actually, there's going to a pattern with all of the Worlds. If you notice and figure it out, you get a cookie. It'll become more apparent as the story goes on.**


	19. The Scuttleship and the Bomb Factory

**Suddenly, my mind is, um, flowing with puns for some reason now. Expect plenty, and I really mean plenty of juicy puns in this chapter, made by yours truly, Link. ;)**

* * *

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 19: The Scuttleship and the Bomb Factory

**4-5**

Link fell out of the pipe. He was now in an underground…factory of sorts.

"Quick! Duck!" a voice whispered. Link dived to the floor as a Bob-omb flew overhead. Link noticed a plumber lying next to him.

"MARIO?!" Link gasped.

"Keep your voice down! Mamma mia!" Mario cried, crawling away from the spot as a Bob-omb landed beside them. Link rolled away. "They have sound-detecting cannons, so keep your voice DOWN."

"When did you speak so much at once? How'd you escape? Where are we even?" Link whispered-shouted.

"I purposely yelped down here after learning of the sound-detecting cannons, a Bob-omb blew up the Scuttle Bug that was holding me, and made the others flee with Sonic and Kirby. They may still be captured at this very moment. I tried going after them, but security is tight here. I needed help. So I waited for you. This is obviously a Bob-omb Factory, by the way." Mario explained as they both got up and tip-toed. "Now, tread carefully."

"Well, for one, you've just BLOWN me away. Now, I guess this is going to be a BLAST!" Link guffawed, having a Bob-omb blast him in the face and lose his power-up. Link shook off the black left on his face, and followed Mario as he jumped on to a green mushroom and then land. "That certainly was the BOMB!"

Link ducked under an incoming Bob-omb, and Mario pointed out a pipe spewing out Bob-ombs.

"It's a FACT. This is a Bob-omb FACTory." Link grinned as he deflected a Bob-omb with his shield as Mario kicked away another. "It's also a BOOMING one, too."

"Please, enough with the puns! I'm trying to stay alive, here!" Mario groaned.

"I reFUSE to follow your request."

Mario groaned. Bob-ombs or Link and his puns? He'd have to think on that one. A Bob-omb had made it to them as they were goofing off on the block staircase, and he ducked, fearing the worst. Link yelped.

"Looks like that was a dud. It would have been nice if we had known. It would have spared us getting conFUSEd." Link chuckled as he kicked the Bob-omb flying his way on to the staircase of blocks. It blew up, leaving an opening for them. They ran on through, and Mario crushed a Red Koopa with a heavy stomp. It smashed through several brick-blocks below and left a long, but thin vertical drop.

Link kicked a block, and got a coin. He kicked another, and a Fire Flower came out.

"This one is MINE." Link heard the connection between palm and face. "What? I'm BURSTING with puns!"

Link ducked under a Bob-omb and stored away the Fire Flower.

Mario just jumped on to the block he kicked, and started walking onwards, but a Spiny tried to drop on Mario, so he back-flipped out of the way, and booted the Spiny spinning on its shell. It went flying, clonking a brick-block and creating an opening for two Bob-ombs. The sound of the smash alone sent a plethora of Bob-ombs at Mario and Link, so they had to duck and wait it out, hoping not to get blasted.

"Looks like that Spiny tried to BOMB you." Link howled into a spurt of laughter, a Bob-omb getting shot into his mouth to clog the puns. Mario pulled it out and chucked it away before it turned red and blew up. Mario jumped on to the red mushroom, and punched away a Bob-omb who was trapped earlier when it tried to drop on his head.

Link hurled a bomb of his own at the other Bob-omb in there, and jumped in after what he just threw. There was a large explosion, causing several Bob-ombs to come flying in out of nowhere. Mario dived out of the way, but the second explosion blew him on to some blue blocks. A Bob-omb tried jumping from a higher level to Mario, but it didn't have enough jump in it, and ended up blowing up against some blue bombable blocks. Mario saw a Star Coin glimmer below him. He dropped down, grabbed the Star Coin, and jumped back out.

Where there was an explosion, Link limped out of there, somehow not too bruised, and with a 1-UP which he then ate, making him feel much better. Link jumped down to a block after a few mushrooms, and punched it. A Fire Flower came out, which he gulped greedily.

"Hey, Mario! Where are you?" Link called, to have a Bob-omb clonk him in the face. "Sheesh, it's like these cannons are light-sleepers!"

Another Bob-omb to the face.

"Can you STOP that?" Link growled, to get pelted by a few Bob-ombs. "For the sake of Hyrule, STOP SHOOTING ME! Seriously, you're TICKING me off!"

Link felt someone lock on to him as he laughed lightly.

"I feel like I'm gonna get BOMBARDED." Link whimpered. That last line did it, apparently, as a whole armada of Bob-ombs came raining in from everywhere and piled on to Link. Mario saw the pile, and kicked each Bob-omb off, one by one.

"Oh, don't worry." Link groaned from the heart of the pile. "I'll FIRE these guys."

Link drew his sword, and hacked away at the pile. Mario yelped, and made a break for it. Then there was a very, very, very loud explosion. Mario was literally tossed into a unsealed box of brick-blocks with a Bob-omb and another Star Coin.

"It's almost as if these things are finding ME." Mario groaned as he stumbled to his feet, covered in soot. He smashed the Bob-omb beside him on the head, grabbed the Star Coin, and jumped out of the unsealed box of brick-blocks, landing on a drawbridge. It started going up, and Mario had to stretch his feet, as one was on one side, and the other was on the other side.

Link trawled towards this very drawbridge, burnt and without his fire power-up, a good thing to the world.

"Well, that sure IGNITED my spirits." Link chuckled at his sarcastic comment. "I got burned, hard."

Mario pointed at his current situation, hoping to get Link to realize that he's is in a dire circumstance, and needs immediate help. Link didn't catch on.

"I think you should DROP these charades." Link giggled as two Spinies on the bottom-side of a rectangle of brick-blocks jumped off the ceiling and dive-bombed Mario. The plumber fell as the drawbridge's gaps between the two halves got too wide, and Mario had to grab one side in order to survive. He swung forward after grabbing the left side, and dodged the falling Spinies. He then used the backlash of the swing to flip back on to the drawbridge.

Mario just glared at Link.

"Hey, there's been a SPIKE in the Spiny population!" Link howled as he pointed at incoming Spinies racing towards them, along with some flying Bob-ombs. Mario kicked the first one into the second, and they were both knocked out. Link shielded himself to The two Spinies fell off the drawbridge, and both of them jumped up on to a higher drawbridge.

Link used his Bow and Arrow to shoot some more incoming Spinies that were about to hit Mario. The plumber looked a BIT thankful.

"I'll take a BOW." Link bowed, and they both walked onwards, ignoring a Bob-omb that flew over their heads and jumping on to a lower drawbridge. It opened up, and Mario saw a blocked pipe. He called Link over, and the swordsman looked.

"No wonder these things are called BLOCKS." Link smacked his knee. "I'm on fire today!"

Mario sighed as a Bob-omb fell on Link's head, bouncing on to those very blocks the duo were staring at. It created an opening, and Mario dragged Link off the drawbridge and into the pipe.

. . .

Mario landed in a puzzle room. Link landed on Mario.

"It's a puzzle room!" Link realized, jumping to his feet and pointing at the castle of blocks on a fat, low U. There were five Bob-ombs, separated by a wall of varying heights. "We have to break this castle down!"

Mario hurled Link off him, and watched the swordsman fall on to a Bob-omb. It blew up as Link jumped away, leaving a mark on the castle. They still couldn't get to the heart, though.

Link landed on the second Bob-omb, carried it to the opening in the block castle, and let it blow up there, leaving an even bigger dent in the block castle. Mario chucked Link a third Bob-omb, and this seemed to get them through to the heart. Link came out of the opening with a Star Coin. Mario and Link jumped over the other half of the block castle, the half that was intact, and climbed up the pipe on the other side.

. . .

Mario and Link came out of the pipe, and they walked down the slope in front of them, stopping a racing Spiny from mowing them down with Link's shield, and leaving the factory through another green pipe.

. . .

Mario and Link came out of the green pipe, and climbed up the white-block staircase, leaping at the flagpole, both of them getting 8000 Points.

**4-6**

As they continued walking, Mario noticed the Scuttle Bugs carrying Sonic and Kirby dashing. He ran after them as the Scuttle Bugs mowed down a few Goombas and a Red Koopa. They found a large Robotic Turtle boat, and jumped in. It was more of a battleship, if anything.

It was all green of various shades, and generally looked like a robotic turtle with cannons and missile launchers and other weapons. Mario and Link skidded to a stop at the end of the road, or land in this case. Toxic water was there, and they couldn't chase after the two.

"DARN IT! WE WERE SO CLOSE!" Link growled, pounding the ground. Mario whistled. A Dorrie came surfing by eventually. It was Dora.

"Oh, so it's you two again. What's the matter?" Dora asked.

"Our friends were captured and are on that battleship. We need your help to chase them down." Link explained. "Can you help us?"

"Of course! Just be sure to protect me, otherwise we'll sink if I get knocked out." Dora added. "Now, hop on!"

Mario and Link jumped on to Dora, and she started moving. Mario jumped on to some land and snagged a Fire Flower after a bit, using it. He jumped back on board, and once again jumped on to some land to grab a Star Coin and pummel some Red Koopas. He once again jumped back on board.

The battleship was now in range. Mario hurled a fireball, leaving a small burn mark on the shell. He charged up a fireball and blasted the battleship again, but there was still just a burn mark left on the point of impact, just slightly darker. The Scuttle Bugs weren't pleased, and shot webs at Mario and Link. The swordsman cut up the incoming webs with ease.

"I'm jumping on board! Watch my back!" Link decided, jumping on to the battleship. He hacked up at the Scuttle Bugs there, fending off their attacking and pursuing them with vicious slashes to form a strong offense. A Scuttle Bug snuck up on Link, and booted him off the ship, Link landing on some land with three pipes. Mario hurled a few fireballs at the Scuttle Bugs as Dora swam around the land mass.

Link jumped back on to Dora as Mario leaped towards a small mass of land with a P-Switch. He stomped the switch and jumped on to the two wooden blocks below a Star Coin, grabbing a few coins. He picked up the Star Coin and jumped back on to Dora.

The Scuttle Bugs shot a cannonball at Dora. Link held up his shield, and smashed it against the cannonball falling from the sky. The cannonball lost all its power after denting the shield greatly, and rolled off Dora when Link let it on to her back while crouching.

"It took BALLS to stand my ground." Link grinned.

"Is he always making puns?" Dora whispered into Mario's ear. Mario nodded sadly. "That's a shame. Looks like this ride will only be near-peaceful."

"Hey!" Link growled.

Mario whistled innocently. Dora swerved to the left of an incoming cannonball, and gasped when she saw a missile come out of the butt of the Robotic Turtle.

"JUMP!" Link yelled. Dora jumped out of the water for just a second, and the missile barely slipped under her. Everyone sighed. "I think I need to PIPE UP and tell you there's a pipe up there! Mario, I'm gonna give you a boost. Enter that pipe and get whatever's in it. While you do that, I'll board that ship again!"

Mario nodded, and jumped on Link's cupped hands, who hoisted him up into the air, watched as he flipped and spun to enter the pipe by climbing in. Link jumped on Dora's head.

"Prepare to launch me on to that ship, OK?"

"If I miss, just so you know, you won't last long in that toxic water." Dora warned. "Are you OK with that?"

"Um…" Link lost a ton of confidence thanks to that question. "Just fling me. This battle is NECK and NECK, and we need that advantage."

Dora glared at Link.

"What? I'm being a pain in the NECK?"

Dora sighed, probably due to the pun, and flicked her head after lowering it a bit, sending Link flying into the neck of the Robotic Turtle ship. The Scuttle Bugs hissed, and scattered away from Link. The swordsman got up, and tried to jump-attack the nearest Scuttle Bug, barely missing.

The Scuttle Bugs that had Sonic and Kirby came out of hiding and barged Link, causing him to stutter backwards to the point of nearly falling off.

"Hey, chill, we're not playing RUGBY (FOOTBALL) here!" Link chuckled as he did a spin-attack, clearing the battleship of most of the Scuttle Bugs on deck.

. . .

Mario was at the top of a hill, with a few Goombas and Green Koopas walking up it towards him. He had the higher ground. Mario sat down on the slope, and slid down it, ramming through all of the listed enemies and jumping at the end to grab a Star Coin and land on a pipe with expertise.

He snagged and ate a 1-UP he got from a nearby block before going through the pipe.

. . .

Link continued to fight against the surrounding Scuttle Bugs, effectively fending them off with his spin-attacks and vertical slashes. The Scuttle Bugs started jumping on top of each other, and toppled themselves over Link. This kept him down. Dora loomed over the battleship, now caught up. She looked down on them as a superior force, and crashed her head down on the battleship, knocking many of the Scuttle Bugs who had come on deck off.

Even the Scuttle Bugs holding people hostage were shaken by this, actually dropping Sonic and Kirby.

"About time!" Sonic grumbled, landing on his feet and kicking off a few Scuttle Bugs.

"Yay! Freedom!" Kirby cheered, inhaling anything that wasn't being attacked or knocked off by Link and Sonic.

Soon enough, the ship was cleared of all Scuttle Bugs now that there were three heroes doing the job, but the ship was battered… and sinking. Link, Kirby and Sonic jumped back on to Dora, and she sailed away to a land mass with a pipe behind Mario, who was there and waving with a Star Coin in his hand. A Green Koopa clonked him on the head.

"STOP WAVING FOR PETE'S SAKE!" the Koopa barked. "It's annoying."

"Hey, it's not his fault you're standing near some water. Of course there'll be WAVES." Link howled.

Two Goombas nearby laughed. Mario stomped them both and kicked the Koopa into the toxic water.

"Well, you've saved us once again, Dora. TANKS for that." Link chuckled as he jumped off.

"Uh, there weren't any tanks involved." Kirby noted, floating off. Link pouted.

"I felt like cargo during that, to be honest." Sonic grumbled. "Or a backpack. Or just baggage. It was sorta degrading."

"What, no TANKS?" Link asked, grinning.

"There weren't any tanks involved!" Kirby growled.

"Are they always like this?" Dora asked. Mario nodded. "That's a shame. Anyway, I'm going to go have lunch with Wiggler. Toodles!"

"Don't say that name, please…" Link shuddered.

"Why?"

"After you were kidnapped were forced to LEAF with those Scuttle Bugs, which I personally think you should all feel like SAPS for getting caught like that, I had some nasty encounters with those wiggly things. I WOOD have liked to move on to another subject, but I think I've GREW to-nah, I'm just gonna go back to my ROOTS before I go NUTS. I bid you A-DEW." Link strolled off into the pipe.

Mario's palm was planted in his face so hard, Sonic had to use Kirby to separate the hand from the face.

"I personally think you he did that because he thought you deserved that for bringing up those bad memories." Mario said, walking into the pipe. Sonic followed him to the rim and listened to the plumber's echo. "And really, that was definitely an effective way of getting back at you for that. I counted, and that were about seven puns in that one burst of words."

"Well, let's just move on. I don't want to get captured again." Kirby said, dashing into the pipe after Mario and Sonic who had moved on too.

. . .

Link had already gotten his 1-UP from the flagpole, and so had Mario. Sonic homing-attacked the top, getting his too, and Kirby inhaled the flagpole so it bent towards him on top of a pipe closer to the flagpole, and grabbed it within the split-second of time when the flagpole was still bending. He got his 1-UP, but this backfired and sent him flying into a castle ahead. Kirby fell inside through a higher window.

"Wow. Just wow." Link laughed. "See ya next FALL!"

"Well, Kirby just helped us find the castle." Sonic said.

"You know, even with that Wiggler trauma, I think this place was all BARK and no BITE!" Link chuckled, approaching the door. "DOOR you want me to lead, or are you willing to risk getting captured within the few seconds of you guys leading?"

Sonic groaned as he pushed the door open and entered.

"You know Mario, when I see that hat of yours, I always think you're gonna get CAPtured!" Link joked. "And I'm half tempted to leave Kirby and Sonic in there to go explore this forest, which is actually a maze to me now. Isn't that A-MAZE you?"

"I'll go warn them, then." Mario walked inside.

"Oh, don't be such a GRASS!" Link guffawed as he ran after Mario into the castle.

* * *

**Hello? *silence* HELLO? *silence***

**I think I may have scared off what few people were actually reading this story with all those tree puns and bomb puns and just puns in general… so I guess it's just me and my computer. That's good 'cause two's a party, TREE's a crowd!**

**I seriously could not find a way to fit that pun into this chapter. So I said it myself in the A/N. NO ESCAPE. :P**

**So, 38 puns in this one chapter, including the A/N. 39 if you count the TANK one. I think I'm spoiling you people, or at least the extinct few who like puns (including me).**

**Also, I don't know why I didn't ask this earlier. Feel free to share some puns with me, they might find their way into this story somehow through various BRANCHES (39!) if they're punny enough. Both credit and cookies *flashes box of cookies* will be given if it does make it in. Even if it doesn't, I'll probably applaud you for your VINE (40!) enthusiasm.**

**Now seriously, run. IVYlly (41!) do not want to kill the last bunch of people reading this with any more puns. Forty-one puns, that very number would probably make someone shudder. O.o**


	20. Mega Massacre Mayhem

**If people are still here after that last chapter… which was a total train-wreck, I'm very shocked. Well, for those who are still here, if any, you probably didn't read the last chapter, which is a VERY good thing.**

**Well, this chapter is definitely much more pun-free than its prequel. So enjoy.**

* * *

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 20: Mega Massacre Mayhem

**4-Castle**

"So, do you see Kirby?" Sonic asked, trying to see if he could spot anything falling from above. Mario shook his head. "Well, let's just keep moving and hope he doesn't fall into lava. That would be VERY bad."

"Hey, look, See-saws!" Link pointed out, the see-saw coming towards the trio and bashing him in the forehead, knocking him on his butt. "Ouch…"

Sonic tried jumping on to the see-saw. He grabbed the ground of it, and held on for dear life. He climbed up, and gave a thumbs up. Mario leaped on to it without a problem.

"Oh, I just need to get into the SWING of things, I guess." Link heckled, diving on to the see-saw before it left him. They jumped off when the see-saw was near to more sold ground, and Mario punched a block, sending a Fire Flower out and falling towards Sonic.

"Not happening!" Sonic jumped, and kicked the Fire Flower into the lava.

"What do you have against Fire Flowers?" Link asked. "They're helpful!"

"Uh…" Sonic scratched his head. "Look, that swing is gonna clonk you in the head!"

Link back-flipped out of the way, and watched Mario jump on to it. Sonic did too, and Link lunged on to the swing, barely making it. They all slid down it and knocked off a Dry Bones lingering about. When it swung close enough, they all lunged on to the next one, Link chucking the Dry Bones there into a Dry Bones on some land ahead. Mario and Link jumped to that land, Link kicking the remains of the Dry Bones into the lava before they could rematerialize.

Sonic ran up the swing as it teetered right and bounded off it at the last second, landing up with the Star Coin. He grabbed it, and jumped down on to land. The trio began to march. Mario looked up, and gasped. Link stopped in the nick of time, as a Thwomp nearly crushed him.

"Looks like my hope of survival in this world was nearly CRUSHED." Link snickered. "Thanks, Mario."

Mario shrugged. Sonic started beating down on the Thwomp, stomping it from going up.

"GET OFF ME, YOU DARN RODENT!" the Thwomp growled.

"Not happening, buddy!" Sonic continued kicking and punching the thing, not letting up on the poor guy. "You came down here, and I'm making sure you stay down!"

Mario and Link just jumped over them.

"GET OFF ME! GO AWAY! GO HOME!" the Thwomp howled.

"Nah, I don't feel like it!" Sonic shouted over it, continuing the beating, chipping off bits of the Thwomp.

"LEAVE ME ALONE! GET OFF MY CASE! I'LL LEAVE YOU PUNKS ALONE!" The Thwomp rose back up and stayed there, as grumpy as a rock. Sonic smirked as he watched the two Thwomps ahead of them look a bit nervous. Mario and Link walked under them, and they both started coming down, but Sonic glared at them, and they suddenly had second thoughts.

"Well, that's definitely a way to deal with those guys." Link noted as they came up to a vertical passage, with two paths. One had ledges, another was just composed coins. Mario started wall-jumping up the one with coins, and made it to the top, no sweat. Link and Sonic tried doing the same, but got in each other's ways, so they got up there, both beaten up a bit. Mario looked a bit shocked.

Sonic glared down at the little Thwomp that was a bit below them, head resting on two blue blocks.

"Seriously, you made an impression on those guys. You ROCK!" Link cackled.

"Only you. Only you." Sonic shrugged as he pounded a Dry Bones on some solid ground. Mario and Link jumped there, too, and Sonic saw a Mega Thwomp, glaring at it. The Thwomp sweat-dropped, looking away and not making eye contact. Mario and Sonic walked under it without a problem. Link stopped once he passed it.

"I smell treasure." Link stated, turning around. "It's below."

"Where?" Sonic asked.

"In the ground below this guy." Link said.

"Hey, you. Down." Sonic ordered. "Otherwise…"

The Mega Thwomp did not need prompting. It crushed through three rows of blocks, revealing a Star Coin under some hard blue blocks.

"See?" Link asked. "Adventurer's instinct."

Mario jumped down and retrieved the Star Coin, running over to Link and Sonic who were tromping Dry Bones and laughing at scared Thwomps after getting a spare Fire Flower from a block the two ignored. Mario eventually caught up by a low ceiling, where he saw a Dry Bones get kicked into the lava.

"What's with you and so cruelly disposing of enemies?" Mario asked. Link jumped to a block, and a Fire Flower came flying out. Sonic smashed it into the lava as it was about to clonk him on the head.

"What's with YOU and so rudely burning items?" Link asked.

"What's with YOU and annoying everyone to death with puns?" Sonic asked.

"Quit FLAMING me!" Link growled with a smirk on his face. "Should I BURN you?"

"Oh, boy…" Sonic just walked away, jumping on to a platform and grabbing a swing's underside to snag the Star Coin there. He waited for the swing to come back, and jumped back on board. Mario and Link jumped on board, and they carefully timed their jumps to make it on to the next swing.

Eventually, they made it to a door. Probably a boss door. Mario entered.

"I just remembered. Where's Kirby?" Link asked.

"I actually don't know." Sonic scratched his head. "Well, we'll figure that out later."

. . .

It was a short hop, skip and jump to the main room. There was an orange switch in the middle on a lower level closer to the lava, with a mirroring bridge and hidey hole after on both sides.

Bowser Junior stood there.

"I have a very nasty surprise for you." Junior warned in a very menacing voice. "You wanna run now?"

Link actually started walking backwards. He turned around, and hit the blockade that came down once they entered. He fell to the floor.

"Oh, wait. You CAN'T run." Junior snickered. "It's like SMB all over again!"

. . .

_Smash. A wall came crashing down._

. . .

"Well, that wasn't cool." Sonic scolded. "Now, show us this surprise. I'm curious."

"You asked for it. Don't blame me." Junior shrugged. "Come, my ELITE MINION!"

Junior made a break for the room ahead, making the barricade block the other exit. There was an awkward silence between the three heroes for quite a while now.

"So, how's the weather?" Link broke the silence.

"Our current forecast are apparently Goombas." Mario reported, pointing up at the Goomba who fell out of the sky and landed on its back. Mario kindly helped it up before running back to his side.

"The Elite Minion's a Goomba?" Link guffawed. "That's hilarious!"

"I'm not sure how I feel about this…" Sonic scratched his head. Mario was at the ready, expecting the worse.

"Well, let's get this over with." Link walked up to the Goomba and slashed it in the face. It growled, and started glowing white. "Uh… is this normal? I don't think it is, but I hope I'm not WHITE."

"Puns when you're nervous. Seriously, what mood would stop you making puns?" Sonic asked as the Goomba beside Link grew to massive proportions. "Whoa, talk about a growth spurt."

"Um…" Mario was staring up at the massive Goomba before them.

"Yeah, we're screwed." Link finally admitted, getting kicked into the wall. Sonic made a break for a hidey hole as the Mega Goomba came romping by. Mario tried squeezing in with Sonic, but there wasn't enough room, so he ran to the wall and waited for impending doom. The Mega Goomba prepared to stomp both Mario and Link, but Sonic jumped out of the hole and stomped an orange switch. Two elevators appeared, one at the feet of Mario and Link, and the other at the other wall.

The elevator started spinning, and took the two up to a higher level. Link got back on his feet, and jump-attacked the head of the Goomba, actually making the massive creature cringe.

"I think it actually felt that." Link cheered.

"Stop cheering! The thing's hardly done yet!" Junior shouted behind the walls. "You did as much damage to it as poking it in the eye would do!"

"Well, that was discouraging." Link moaned. "I feel slightly gutted now. We may not survive this battle, then."

Sonic kicked the Mega Goomba in the foot as Mario lunged at the creature, latching on to its head. The Mega Goomba shook him off vigorously, and kicked away Sonic.

"Seriously, this thing does not want to go down!" Sonic growled.

"PARTY!" Kirby cheered as he zoomed in through a high window on a Warp Star with some Jumbo Candy.

"Where'd you come from?!" Link gasped.

"Well, I sorta found this castle's secret candy horde. That's where I wound up in when I fell through the window. I hoarded the candy, which was actually Jumbo Candy, and took it here on my Warp Star. I heard groaning, so that's why I came here. Miss me?"

"CAN THE Jumbo Candy actually help us?" Link asked with a smirk on his face as the Mega Goomba kicked him like a football and stomped the power-up out of Mario.

"Of course! It makes you big!" Kirby waved his hands about for emphasis.

Mario fell out of the sky after getting booted by the Mega Goomba, landing on the Jumbo Candy and growing to the size of the Mega Goomba.

"It's like I ate a Mega Mushroom!" Mario stretched his arms, and cracked them. He started beating down on the Mega Goomba with his fists. Link chomped on some Jumbo Candy, too, and grew to the size of the Mega Goomba, too. Kirby did the same, and so did Sonic.

The Mega Goomba was terrified. It shook in fear.

Mario simply jumped on the Mega Goomba. Sonic started kicking it. Kirby beat down on it with his Hammer, and Link hacked at it. The Mega Goomba couldn't move; he was too caught up in the beating to escape it. In about five seconds, the Mega Goomba exploded, knocking the adrenaline out of the four heroes, and causing them to shrink to normal size. A Key dropped, along with some fangs. Mario picked up the fangs, but they were swiped by Junior once he opened the exit with the Key.

Mario saw Junior with Peach in tow.

"Care to give her back without a fight?" Mario asked.

"Nah." Junior said, hoisting Peach over his small back and making a break for it.

"And the repetition continues…" Link commented as they all tailed him into the snowfields.


	21. Let It Snow

**Anyway, I guess you call this roughly the halfway point. This story's looking to be in the mid-40s, chapter-wise. And this is the 21st part of the story, so I'll leave you to perceive whatever there is left to perceive about that.**

* * *

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 21: Let It Snow

"Great… snow. Let's hope Link can't salvage too many puns based on snow." Sonic said.

"You SNOW I'm right behind you, right? ICY you're hoping I'm a FROST cause at ice puns, which isn't very 'ICE. I 'oughta give you the COLD SHOULDER for that." Link said.

"Great, he's a wizard at them." Sonic said as he trudged through the snow.

"No, I'm a BLIZZARD at them."

"Hey, guys, look!" Kirby shouted, eating a ton of snow off the ground.

"You know there's usually nasty stuff in ground-bound snow, right Kirby? And the ground can be pretty FRIGID if you mess with the snow you're on." Link said.

"Ah, who cares. I EAT ALL!" Kirby shouted with his mouth full, then doing something with it in his mouth, then a snowball shot out, clonking Mario in the face.

"Mamma mia, watch where you fire! Thatta hurt!" Mario rubbed his forehead. Kirby grinned, mouth full with crafted snowballs. Mario yelped, and started running as Kirby fired them like a machine gun somehow, even making similar noises. Mario was gunned down eventually, and Kirby eventually ran out of ammo which he had used pelting a knocked-out Mario with.

"So, when do you think he'll come to?" Sonic asked.

"Meh, give him about five paragraphs." Link shrugged, hearing something break far in the distance although the source of it could not be seen, and he just started grinning sheepishly.

"Let's go Jigglypuff on him!" Kirby cheered, pulling out a marker and running up to the unconscious plumber.

"Looks like someone still remembers what happened in the Pokémon World when we went to Kanto…" Sonic realized. "But is this really a good idea?"

"Silencio! I am but an artist at work! You wait, yes?" Kirby said, nearly sounding French.

"No."

"But I have a wide expanse of snow ready to fire at you, no mercy. You wait now, yes?"

"Yes, YES." Sonic said, backing off.

Link guffawed at the very detailed and large eyelashes Kirby had given Mario, and watched him continue on to the nose, where he drew a cannon firing nothing nearby to make it look like Mario's round nose was the cannonball, looking like it was shooting out at all who stared at it.

Mario started murmuring, then started rolling about, eventually settling with his back facing up. Kirby growled, for he was doing the ears, then just salvaged this moment and wrote the words "KICK ME" on Mario's back, and drew himself twice using Mario's two butt cheeks as the bodies. Link was on the floor, and his laughing woke the plumber up.

He plopped Kirby on the ground nearby, off of him. Link couldn't help but grin at Mario's doodled face.

"Hm, we should probably get going now." Mario said, then noticing Link's face. "What's wrong with you?"

"Oh, nothing. I'm just happy being in the snow and all." Mario just sighed and moved on.

"I wonder how Tails is doing…" Sonic wondered. "He'd probably love to see this."

"Why don't you go visit whoever this Tails guy is?" Mario suggested.

"But I'm busy helping you. I feel obliged to."

"Then come back after saying hi." Mario said. "I mean, you can TELEPORT at will."

"Good point. Be back in a moment." Sonic said.

Sonic started running in a circle, creating a blue whirlwind. Then he started spinning in a ball, and flung himself into the middle of the whirlwind. Once he was high enough, Sonic spun out of his ball form and snapped his fingers, making the whirlwind disperse into a cobalt blue flash. They were paused in mid-air.

The others waited. Then there was a spark and a little explosion and Sonic slowly started moving downwards again, faster and faster, but then there was an implosion of shockwaves and he went flying into the snow. The trio in the snow ran over.

"What happened there?" Link asked, snickering at Mario's face and his baffled expression.

"I don't have a clue…" Sonic groaned.

. . .

Tails was fiddling with some newfangled invention of his, when another of his newfangled inventions started beeping till the cows came home.

"Oh, boy. Something must be wrong out there if this of all things is beeping." Tails realized, walking over to it. He examined the screen. "Huh, there's some dimensional interference over in that Mario guy's world. And WHAT'S THAT?!"

Next thing he knew, Tails was engulfed by a hand that came out of nowhere, and taken away to who knows where, his world descending into darkness.

. . .

Link was blasted to the floor by an implosion of shockwaves, just like Sonic was. Kirby had the same unfortunate outcome.

"Can we really not teleport anymore?" Link asked.

"Then we're STUCK HERE?!" Kirby gasped. "So I can't even escape if Mario finds out I went Jigglypuff on him?"

"You went what on me?"

Sonic pulled out the Mirror Shield Link had and showed Mario the damage Kirby did. Link then kicked Mario in the back, and got a nasty look.

"What? It told me to!" Link pointed at Mario's back. It took some time, butt Link and Sonic managed to show Mario the face and words Kirby drew on his back and other two cheeks. Mario glared at Kirby, then proceeded to run about in the snow and then waited for the snow to melt and wash off the doodles.

"Moving on, we're STUCK here!" Kirby cried. "This is TERRIBLE!"

"It's not THAT bad here!" Mario said.

"It's not that this place is horrible, it's just the fact that I can't go home now!" Kirby cried. "What about Rick? And Pitch? Or Meta Knight? Now I can never lay a smack-down on King Dedede again! And I'll never see Waddle Dee or Adeline again! No more eating Swiss rolls under the starry skies!"

"Who are these people? And how the heck can you get a Swiss roll under visible stars?!" Link gasped. "Why have you been hiding this from me?!"

"So, we may actually be stuck here forever." Sonic said. "Unless you have someone whose IQ is on par with Tails' in this world."

"Assuming you mean someone who's smart, E. Gadd would be your best bet. The guy makes all kinds of stuff." Mario said.

"Looks like we have some after-adventure stuff to do. Nice." Link said. "Anyway, let's get to work. There's a castle out here, and probably a fortress in our best possible path there, and we need to take 'em down in COLD BLOOD!"

"Just when I thought he was done with the puns…" Sonic sighed.

**5-1**

A Snow Spike hurled a snowball at the quartet when they had no ground over their heads. Sonic thought fast and did a spin-dash through a line of Goombas ahead, clearing a path for the others.

Kirby, on the other hand, inhaled the snowball, and transformed into Ice Kirby. Mario and Link stopped running, and eventually, they were all before a pool of snow, Sonic and all. Mario stepped in first, and started sinking.

"AH! IT'S QUICKSNOW! GET HIM OUT OF THERE!" Link cried, grabbing Mario and hurling him out of the quicksnow… by a few centimeters. Mario got up, looked at Link funny, then walked back in the quicksnow.

"It's clearly not quicksnow." Mario said. "If anything, it's deep-snow. Now let's-a-go!"

"OK, maybe I did go off the DEEP end there, sorry…" Link scratched his head, grinning.

Everyone followed Mario through the snow, and the Sonic leaped out of the snow, then smashing away a nearby Goomba with a kick. They trudged on out of the deep-snow, and continued along, freezing then kicking away any Goomba who got in their way.

Soon enough, they had jumped over a pit and met eye to eye with another Snow Spike, who pulled out another large snowball, and rolled it at them. Sonic spin-dashed into it, but was sent flying by the snowball. Kirby tried dash-attacking it, but was sent flying too. Mario tried stomping the thing, but that sent him a fair bit backwards and once again in the path of it.

Link tried a spin-attack, but he was mowed down and the snowball rolled on, and Mario, in a last ditch effort, hammered away the snowball with his Ultra Hammer.

"You have a hammer?" Kirby asked, getting up and walking up to Mario. He nodded, then proceeded to stomp the Snow Spike and defeat it. He raided a block behind where it once was, and got and used a Fire Flower. They jumped up a bit, then looked up to see a Star Coin. Kirby started flying up there, and Link just looked up at it, until he was clobbered by a heap of snow that fell off one of the branches.

"That wasn't very COOL…" Link groaned as Kirby returned with the Star Coin. Mario and Sonic were still snickering at how Link was dog-piled by the snow. Kirby knocked the snow off Link, well, tried to, but instead he knocked the Link off the snow with the dash-attack, sending him into deep-snow.

There was a Snow Spike on some higher ground up there, so Sonic made a move and got up there to beat down on the guy. Mario and Link trudged through the deep-snow and watched Kirby fly over it to Sonic and the Snow Spike.

Sonic just smashed the Snow Spike in the face, and the guy was on the floor, knocked out. Kirby then dive-bombed a block ahead which yielded a Fire Flower he just stored away.

They jumped over another pit and watched Link get clobbered by yet another snow-pile and then nearly get winged by a cocky Paratroopa if it weren't for Mario burning the guy and letting Kirby form a large snowball and arc it at the Paratroopa, finishing it. Kirby flew up to a high Star Coin, and they carried on through the deep snow to find a Snow Spike before some deep-snow on lower ground.

"I think it'll be in our best interest to use those blocks to get past this Snow Spike and not get mowed down by his snowballs." Link said, although Mario and Sonic had already taken down the Snow Spike and were leaving him behind. Kirby was just napping on Link's head now. "Yah, you're cold!"

"Don't you see the hat of icicles on my head?" Kirby ask as Link plopped him on the ground next to him before they chased after Mario and Sonic.

Mario bashed a block several times to make another one appear and make it taller as Sonic ran by him and jumped into the wall ahead, jumping off that wall into the raised wall of blocks Mario set-up for him, and bouncing off that wall and crushing a nearby Snow Spike before getting a major boost into the air and taking down another Snow Spike on some pretty high ground before getting taken down by a lump of snow.

Kirby carried Link over Mario's head as he climbed up on to where the first Snow Spike was and watched the flying duo snag the Star Coin and land next to him. They jumped over a nearby pit and assisted Sonic who was stuck in the snow. They walked on a bit, and watched Sonic clear the path of four Goombas and a Paratroopa stuck in deep snow.

As the trio lagging behind began to catch up, Sonic took out a Snow Spike who tried to bowl a massive snowball at everyone.

"Not happening, bub!" Sonic said as he kicked the guy's lights out. Soon enough, they were all before the flag-pole. Link hastily made an excellent leap to the flag before someone made it harder for him to get a 1-UP, but was taken down by a pile of snow and hit the ground hard.

Kirby tried flying up to the flagpole, but was also taken by some snow farther out, and bounced off Link's head as he had recovered and tried to salvage his position, but due to getting stomped, he got 100 Points, Kirby got 4000 Points, and Mario and Sonic both got 1-UPs as there were no more piles of snow in the branches.

"I'm still shocked we can't go back to our worlds anymore…" Sonic sighed as they all walked onwards.

"Meh, we'll cross that FRIDGE when we come to it." Link chuckled, bumping into a pipe leading underground. He walked through it, followed by the others.

* * *

**Took me long enough to get this chapter out. Sorry about that wait. .**

******Oh, right. COVER SWAP GO! There. Now you can look at Mario getting pelted by snowballs if you were struggling to imagine that scene in the story. XD**


	22. Stretchy Skies

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 22: Stretchy Skies

Luigi continued to run through the forest after that encounter in the Ghost House. A Scuttle Bug tried to snipe him, but he yelped and ran.

"This forest is dangerous! Why did I have to be so rash and leave behind that swordsman…" Luigi groaned as he forced his feet through some bog. "Now I'm all alone again, and I brought that on myself which makes that feeling much worse! I'm even stuck in bog!"

Luigi further forced his feet through the bog, and he got out of it eventually.

"Hey! Help!" a voice cried. "Let go of me! Someone!"

"People!" Luigi cheered, running towards the sound, ducking and jumping over vines and brambles to find Kamek levitating an invisible box with a standing yellow fox inside. He was floating towards a nearby castle.

"That fox has TWO tails?!" Luigi shrieked quietly, dumbfounded. "How's that possible?!"

"Silence, you two-tailed runt! You're not what I wanted out of that grab, but I'll make do and lock you up! Now silence! Clam up!" Kamek ordered as he flew on through the forest with the fox. Luigi quietly followed them, intrigued by the presence of a walking fox who could talk.

"So you're the one causing that dimensional interference?!" the fox asked. "Doing things like that can really screw up the universe, you know!"

"Looks like you're smarter than you look. I bet we could find a use for you. But that'll be decided later when the Prince sees you." Kamek stated, stopping before the castle, and forcing the door open with some magic. "Now, I need to make sure I salvage one of that Goomba's fangs in case the Prince couldn't. Missing an ingredient could be disastrous during the restoration."

The fox looked a bit confused now.

"Never you mind that. It has nothing to do with you." Kamek said as he flew into the castle with the fox in the box levitating behind him. Luigi tailed him, closing the door when he got inside. "Hmm?"

Kamek turned around to see what had closed the door, as he hadn't done that with his magic. Luigi quickly hit the floor, belly against the floor moments before Kamek saw what was behind him. The fox turned to see what, too. Kamek stared the scene behind him up.

"Just some grass." Kamek mused.

"That's grass? Inside a building on solid ground, near LAVA, though I must ask how you import lava inside a building, because that'd be some pretty challenging job without getting burned." the fox was dumbfounded at how Kamek took that "grass" as grass.

Luigi silently wished the fox would stop drawing attention to Luigi, as he was worried Kamek might realize what he really was, although Luigi was shocked to find himself identified as grass, feeling pretty offended to be _just some grass_.

"Actually, now that you mention it… that may be just be moss. Maybe a grass- Just maybe though, as I'm still thinking that's grass, to be honest." Kamek said. "Too bad I left my glasses in the snow castle, I would've been able to get a better look at this green lump."

Luigi sighed in relief, but felt further offended that he _might be moss_.

"It moved!" the fox cried. "I heard it sigh!"

"You're seeing things, runt. Now pipe down." Kamek said as they flew off deeper into the castle, Luigi following a fair bit behind.

. . .

**5-2**

Link rolled landed on the ground, underground, rolling forward upon impact to avoid Mario who landed face first where Link once was. Kirby fell on Mario, and Sonic landed on the top of the two-man pile. Link sighed in relief that he dodged the pile-up.

"We really should stop rushing in pipes like that. It never ends well." Mario groaned.

"Too right." Kirby moaned, stabbed in the back by Sonic's quills. "Do you polish these at night or something?"

Sonic got up on Mario, Kirby being stuck on Sonic's quills, and jumped off him, Kirby still on his quills. Link waited for the other three to sort themselves out, which they did except for Kirby who was still stuck on Sonic.

"QUILL you let go of Kirby, Sonic?" Link asked with a chuckle.

"Hey, I have no control of my spiked wonders." Sonic shrugged. "If someone gets stuck on them, that's their fault."

"Well, at least I don't have to do anything." Kirby said, going to sleep.

"At least you'll have each other's backs!" Link guffawed receiving a bored glare from Sonic and a look of urgency from Mario, the latter reminding him to move on, so he walked on to the ice ahead. "Huh, this is an ice cave. Should've seen it coming."

Mario and Sonic stepped on it too, and they skated forward. Mario looked up.

"Mamma mia!" Mario gasped, looking at the plethora of blocks above their head.

Sonic jumped at the sudden cry, and fell through the small pit at the end of the icy ground on this side to his doom due to his momentum. Luckily, Kirby woke up at Mario's gasp, and started flying up, still stuck to Sonic's quills, and let Sonic take control as he stopped flying above more icy ground to the east.

Mario and Link fought their way through the Spike Tops, except they couldn't, as the Spike Tops had hard defense, and fireballs couldn't scratch 'em, nor could sword slashes. Link tried arrows and boomerangs. Nada. Link chucked a bomb. It didn't do squat. Link even tried bomb arrows (arrows with bombs on the end), but those didn't even do a scratch.

Mario sighed, picked up the struggling Link, and dodged the Spike Tops who really didn't try to attack them, and the group here seemed like the "don't bug me and I won't bug you" type, so it was more like Mario staying out of their way as he carried Link.

"You're rather heavy…" Mario groaned as he jumped on to a floating block of ice he didn't question, and hurled him on to a large lump of ice below where Sonic and Kirby were. Mario saw some Swoopers flying at him from the ceiling, and bounced off them, landing on the lump of ice below on the slope there. Mario slipped, and rolled down, knocking Sonic and Link who were scaling it down like bowling pins.

Mario stumbled to his feet, luckily stopped right by the pit at the far west end of the ice. He then ran after Link and Sonic who had already gotten up and continued climbing the slope. He soon did so, but nearly broke his face on the slippery ice in the process. They had reached the end of the icy ground, and jumped down, dodging a Swooper who bit the ice by accident and got brain freeze.

Mario led the squad on to some more ice and off a trio of blocks blocking a lower path, and saw a ton of pipes with Piranha Plants living inside. Mario gave Link a look, and Link nodded. He hurled a bomb up the first low pipe, and the plant inside was no more. They moved to the next pipe, and did the same.

Mario bashed a horizontal three-line of blocks, and revealed a Star Coin, which he jumped and grabbed.

"You know, it's pretty silent here." Link realized, stamping the ice he stood on, cracking it a bit. "So here's an ICEBREAKER!"

Mario mentally face-palmed as he watched Link bomb the next two pipes which happened to be next to each other simultaneously as he chucked them at the rims the pipes were touching each other with when the plants inside were just popping out.

There was one more pipe with a plant inside, and Link walked by it, expecting it to be uninhabited… but it was, so he was met with a nasty surprise.

"YAH!" Link cried, falling on his butt as the Piranha Plant snapped at Link savagely from above.

"Uh, Link?" Sonic asked. "The guy's outta reach. He can't bite you… barely."

Link didn't hear this as the plant was chomping thin air so loudly it overwhelmed any nearby sounds. He continued to sit there helplessly. Mario burned the Piranha Plant with a single fireball, then walked by the pipe casually. Link sighed in relief, and got up, following the two. They all jumped down to non-slippery ground.

"Hey, that yellow pipe has light shining through it!" Kirby pointed out as Sonic jumped over a pit a bit ahead. "There's stuff up there!"

Sonic nodded as he skidded to a stop as he landed on the icy ground across the pit, then proceeded to leap just barely high enough to climb inside the pipe, and up it, Kirby then taking control and flying up the pipe. Mario and Link landed on the icy ground Sonic had just been on, and dodged a few more Spike Tops. There was a spring on a pair of blocks below a Star Coin.

Matters weren't too good as there were two pairs of blocks on both sides of the Star Coin, with a Spike Top crawling over each. Mario hurled a few fireballs at them, and they held strong. Link hurled a bomb at them, and they went flying off the blocks, now enraged. The nearby Spike Tops were also enraged.

Mario thought fast, and slide tackled the Spike Tops on the ground as Link bounced off the spring and snatched the Star Coin. The two Spike Tops (plus the other two on lone blocks they dodged earlier who had jumped on to the ice to ready their attack) slid across the ice and fell into the pit.

"That works." Link said as he back-flipped over the Spike Tops charging behind him, and spun-attack them forward towards Mario, who jumped over the now rolling Spike Tops and watched them fall into the pit. Mario sighed in relief as Link jumped up to a block to the east of where the Star Coin once was and bashed a Fire Flower out of the block he bashed, using it on the spot.

Link, with his newly regained firepower, marched onwards with Mario following as they passed over a pipe with shouts from above, both of them soon getting engulfed by bodies…

. . .

Moving back to the moment when Sonic and Kirby entered the pipe, they had climbed up into the outside, where a coin lay on the ice before them. Sonic walked up to it, jumping to the piece of ice it was on and proceeding to pick it up and stash it away like a ring.

But alas, it was a pseudo coin, and it shaped to the form of a Moneybag, jumping away and letting Sonic bite the ice as he fell over in shock. Kirby got Sonic upright again, and the hedgehog spat out the cold melted water, then giving chase to the Moneybag as they both bounded from ice block to ice block.

Sonic pounced at the Moneybag mid-leap, and they bounded off another ice block, rolling in mid-air as they crashed into the green pipe at the end, falling through it and crying out. Sonic continued to beat down on the Moneybag, coins flying into his possession as he did so.

They then fell out of the pipe and landed on a marching Link and a following Mario, the Moneybag crying out one last time and disappearing in a puff and a huff, leaving behind a 1-UP Mushroom which Kirby snagged as he could just about grab it as he was on top.

"Well, this seems to be a common thing." Sonic groaned, being flattened by the weight of the other three heroes even though he was the one who landed on two of them, the other being on his back. "Though I'm getting SICK of it!"

As Sonic said sick, he had leaped to his feet with a small spin in the air before landing on them.

"The work just PILES on to us!" Link snickered as he got up. Sonic ran ahead, getting bombed by Swoopers. He back-stepped out of their fangs' path, and jumped into the air, homing-attacking all five of the Swoopers, performing an Action Chain. Mario and Link had caught up now, watching Sonic collide with the last of the Swoopers.

Sonic then led the team over a few pits, and came to a trio of Spike Tops. Sonic boosted into the Spike Tops in mid-air, sending them flying into the pit below. Mario then bashed the block above, and claimed a Fire Flower for his own personal storage.

They continued from platform to platform, mashing their way through a plethora of blocks and finding a pipe with light shooting out of it above a chunk of ice. Sonic leaped up there, boosting the Spike Top in his way over some blocks, and into another Spike Top, along with a third, the trio all falling into the pits below.

Sonic was then met with a Piranha Plant that shot out of the pipe Sonic was right next to, which he kicked with great haste before it had even opened its mouth.

"Don't even try it!" Sonic shouted as he made short work of the beast before jumping up the pipe. Mario and Link walked by that very pipe soon after, expecting Sonic to catch up if that was a dead end. Mario and Link carefully jumped on to the ice chunks ahead, being wary of the few Spike Tops ahead.

Mario walked over a Spike Top, and Link walked around another as the creatures aimlessly walked about, hardly seeming like they wanted to do damage. The last one in the underground area even stepped out of the duo's way.

"POLITE enemies?" Mario gasped.

"I guess they've TOPPED the niceness of every other enemy out there." Link chuckled as they jumped up the pipe at the dead end.

. . .

They were now before a block staircase. Sonic popped out of the pipe behind them, looking disappointed.

"It just led to a single pipe after a red flag. Not worth my time, considering there was a Piranha Plant that tried to kill me there." Sonic stated, the other two nodding before they all climbed up the staircase.

Mario leaped at the flag that was apparently there, nabbing 1000. Link tripped and rolled into Mario on the flag, just clipping the spot below, getting 800. Sonic/Kirby managed to hit the tip of the flagpole and get a 1-UP.

They marched into the castle ahead, only to fall through a trapdoor and land in a cannon each (except in Sonic and Kirby's case, where they landed in the same cannon as they were stuck together to an extent). All three cannons shot their inhabitants into the skies above.

. . .

**5-A**

Mario, at the end of his cannon flight, crashed into the snow of some very high ground, and rolled in it to a stop, groaning. Link went splat into the snowy ground face first, his body going limp. Sonic landed on his butt, and bounced forward a bit as Kirby slid off his quills, landing on the ground unharmed.

"Aw… I liked being on there." Kirby said, then jumping on Sonic as if he was mounting him. "Well, this is familiar. We're going to do these combo attacks that differ depending on my ability, OK?"

Sonic shrugged; like he had a choice. Kirby grinned at how easily he accepted this, and they jumped on to a thin blue mushroom that stretched out moments after, then bashing the block above and claiming a Fire Flower for his storage.

"I guess this is the next STRETCH of this long adventure!" Link sniggered, then realizing Mario had left him behind, and had jumped on the stretched mushroom. Sonic/Kirby had already jumped on to another stretched mushroom just as it was shrinking horizontally just like it had stretched horizontally.

"So, these mushrooms stretch in and out horizontally. Duty noted." Kirby said in an intelligent voice.

"Kirby, it's duly noted, not duty noted." Sonic said, getting kicked in the back as an indication to jump again… and possibly due to being corrected also. He sighed and did just that, leaping to a high stretched mushroom, then bounding off it on to some snowy ground.

Mario landed right behind them, then leaped over their head. Link stumbled by, too. Sonic jumped on to another stretched mushroom that all three groups were standing on. It started shrinking again, and all of them bounced, ignoring the nearby red ring. Sonic leapt up to a high mushroom that had just shrunk, landing on the middle of it.

"You know, you gotta wonder how these mushrooms stretch like this. So darn flexible." Sonic stated as he jumped on to another high mushroom that was stretching out. He dropped down on to a pair of blocks next to each other, and saw a Koopa on some higher snowy ground.

Link interrupted their stare-off by bashing the block they stood on from some snowy ground below and swiping the Fire Flower neither of the duo grabbed, then waited for someone to do stuff with Mario by the rock surface that was part of the higher snowy ground.

"PARTNER ATTACK!" Kirby shouted, pulling out his Wooden Hammer, and wasting no time in aiming with his hammer that now had ice attributes and conking Sonic into his ball form with snowy attributes, and he flew into the Koopa in the frosty state he was in, freezing the Koopa and sending him flying as a block of ice.

Sonic uncurled, high above Kirby due to rebound, and landed before Kirby, him jumping back on.

"That's gotta be one of the best moves I've ever had when paired with someone like this using the Ice Power." Kirby admitted. Sonic shrugged, and they jumped on to a high mushroom after that, and Kirby jumped off his mount to fly down and grab a Star Coin without risking death through falls.

Kirby flew back to Sonic, and jumped back on board, the duo jumping onwards to land on a mushroom with a Koopa. Like before, Kirby smashed Sonic into the Koopa, the attack having the same effect on all three parties, except this time, the frozen Koopa smashed into a Koopa on a mushroom ahead, the frozen Koopa breaking out and both of them falling out of the sky, never to be seen again (in the story, at least).

Mario came flying from behind them, bounced off their heads and hit a block that shot out a vine, landing on an mushroom that was shrunk. He jumped on the block, signaled for the others to follow, and climbed up it.

"That was random…" Kirby said as he kicked Sonic into gear, the hedgehog sighing and jumping on to the shrunk mushroom that was now stretching, and chasing Mario up the vine by having Kirby air-lift him up as it was awkward to climb while on a mount/being mounted.

Link had finally dragged his tired bones to the vine after a few hops, and climbed up the vine.

. . .

"Uh, where's Mario?" Kirby asked Sonic when he air-lifted Sonic up into the bonus area the vine stopped in. They saw a spinning propeller, and looked up to see Mario spinning like a copter towards four blocks, the plumber loaded with blue coins which he stuffed away upon landing on the blocks.

Mario back-flipped and clipped the Star Coin above the blocks, not visible to the landlubbers at the bottom. Mario then jumped just as the P-Switch he hit prior to the others' arrival ended, and fell out of the bonus area while collecting a vertical line of normal coins that were just temporarily blocks.

Link had just climbed up to see Sonic jumping after Mario with Kirby STILL mounting him. He jumped after them.

. . .

"Looks like there's only a single fang left." Kamek deduced, looking at the single fang that remained after the heroes' battle with Mega Goomba on the very battlefield. "Eh, may as well take it just in case the other was snagged by the pesky good guys."

Luigi dived into one of the holes of the battlefield as a hiding spot, and watched/listened further.

"He must mean Mario and that guy Mario called Link!" Luigi thought.

"What good guys? Are you talking about Sonic? Or one of the others?"

. . .

Mario was falling rather wildly, only to notice to blue mushrooms that had stretched out. Mario tried to dive-bomb them where they touched, only for them to shrink just before he hit them, and he fell between the shrinking mushrooms, luckily landing on a Star Coin on the middle of a mushroom that was fully stretched out.

Link landed on a lone block to the west of Mario's spot, smashing out a 1-UP Mushroom which landed right where Kirby and Sonic had… on a blue mushroom that was fully stretched out and touching the mushroom Mario was on. Kirby guzzled that mushroom, and Sonic got to his feet, walking them both over to Mario.

"You know, I think it was a stupid idea jumping off like that. If it weren't for our perfect timing, we would've… been in trouble, at the very least." Kirby said. Mario shrugged. Sonic pointed at the flagpole ahead. "FLAGPOLE! MUSH, HEDGEHOG! MUSH!"

Sonic glared at Kirby, then hesitantly leaped into the air, landing on a stretching mushroom just before the flagpole. Link jumped right over their heads, then landed at the end of the stretching mushroom and bounced off it again, spinning like a propeller with his sword stuck out, so he looked more like a chopper, or copter.

He flew into the flagpole, and chopped the top half off. Mario gaped at the damage Link did as he jumped off the low mushroom on to the snowy ground.

"Whoops!" Link chuckled. "I guess this move made the CUT though! It even shows a SLICE of my power!"

The swordsman smashed into the castle after the flagpole, and fell from the wall to the floor, groaning a bit. Sonic had jumped over what was left of the flagpole from the mushroom, not getting any apparent points like Link. He had a slightly rough landing, stuttering a bit, but landed much better than Link.

Mario just jumped on the little stand the flagpole remains were on, jumped up to the highest point of the lower half of the flagpole, and poked it, getting 1000 points and walking up to Link, helping the poor guy up.

"Onwards, my steed! Onwards!" Kirby ordered, Sonic running ahead with Kirby mounting him. Mario and Link chased after them… onwards throughout the snowy winter wonderland.

* * *

**This is what happens when the internet dies out for a few days and I'm stuck with a buncha Kirby Dream Land 3 videos I downloaded for… well, not saying why they were there, but you can see it gets into my writing somehow in some form.**

**Also, I think the real term for the Luigi segments is the "subplot". To think it took me all this time to realize this. And the subplot wasn't in the unpublished original version of this story that still is an embarrassment to read, so that's a plus for me not knowing FanFiction existed several years ago. **

**And sorry about the slump in updates for the past few weeks, I was busy wrapping up another tale. So now you'll be seeing more regular updates from now on, thankfully.**


	23. Frosty Fortress

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 23: Frosty Fortress

"Huh, there's a fortress or tower or whatever it is here." Mario looked up at the building that stood before him. "This snowy fog must be deep."

"Considering a blizzard started up at one point, I can't blame the suddenness of this tower's appearance… and the fact that Link ran right into the wall." Sonic said, shivering a bit.

"I bet the punk kid was the one who was laughing like a hyena at me…" Link grumbled. "Oh, I'LL SNOW HIM, ALL RIGHT. I'LL SHOW HIM! Let's go!"

Link darted inside the tower after opening the door. Mario, Kirby and his mount followed him in.

**5-Tower**

"Look, we're on an elevator!" Kirby cheered, realizing the whole tower was one big elevator (which was a brown platform) for the most part, except there was no kind of button or switch anywhere down there. "And it's not moving…"

"Work, elevator, work!" Link ordered. "Open sesame! Hokey pokey! Bowser Jr!"

"I don't think there's a password, Link." Sonic said. "There's probably a hidden switch."

"Well, I thought this was a normal elevator… with level switches and the wonders of ELEVATION!" Kirby said, the elevator now moving up. "Hey, we have elevation! AWESOME!"

The elevator stopped going up.

"Definitely a password. So, the password is elevation, huh?" Link figured out, the elevator moving up again.

"How'd you get elevation?" Sonic asked, looking skeptical as the elevator then stopped, 'causing that skeptical look to falter.

"Well, that was the only word Kirby used in both sentences, and elevation would make sense for an elevator's password." Link explained, the elevator moving again.

"Elevation! Elevation! Elevation! Elevation! Elevation! Elevation! Elevation! Elev-UM!" Kirby repeated, giggling as he messed with the elevator's configuration, making it go up and down rapidly, basically jittering, causing the people on board, the three parties, to start jittering with it.

Sonic covered Kirby's mouth to pipe him down, but he had done that at the worst moment, and the elevator stopped. Sonic removed his hand.

"Elevation!" Sonic covered it again. The elevator got moving again. After a moment of coin collecting, a spiked ball fell down, rolling about on the square elevator. Sonic removed his hand, and Kirby said no more. The spike ball bounced off a wall, and rolled towards Mario, homing in on him.

"Oh no!" Mario cried, running away from the spike ball as it chased him. "These are homing balls!"

"Well, maybe we can blow 'em up!" Link grinned, pulling out a bomb.

"Don't throw! You'll blow us up in the process!" Sonic cried. "Well, Mario at least. We'll be fine."

"Don't throw! Don't throw! Don't throw!" Mario cried. Link shrugged, and in the process the bomb detached from his hand, going a few feet before blowing up and sending Link flying back, him losing his power-up.

The spike ball jumped a bit, but continued chasing Mario as a Star Coin came into view. Mario curved around, darted past the spike ball, causing it to do a U-turn, too, and chase him towards the Star Coin.

Mario jumped, and snatched the Star Coin, and continued running. He was getting tired, now. Link extracted a Fire Flower from a pair of blocks, and used it to replace his recently lost power.

"OK, be risky; THROW THE BOMB!" Mario shouted, now panting from having to run so much. The spike ball was persistent for a ball of metal. Link prepared to chuck the bomb, but a Dry Bones fell from a platform above and tried to bone him with a bone.

Link held his sword up to block the vertical slice, then threw the bomb to the wall, nearly blowing up Sonic and Kirby, then pulled out his shield to block a horizontal backhand.

"Hey! Watch where you throw those things!" Kirby shook his fist.

Link got in a spin-attack, and sent the Dry Bones stuttering back into the spike ball which Mario had chased the ball into. The Dry Bones was absolutely wrecked, no remains left.

"You know, I guess this would work…" Kirby dropped his Ice, and inhaled the spike ball, getting Needle. "Now, where's a poor soul we can test the partner attack on…?"

There was another spike ball. Link took out a bomb and hurled it the second he saw the thing fall off the platform leading into the wall hole it came from. The bomb exploded, destroying the spike ball.

Moments later, a pair of Dry Bones fell down from the sky.

"You *CLACK* know the *CLACK* drill, bro?" one of the Dry Bones asked the other.

"Gotcha." The other nodded, their bones ready to clonk heads with. Link did a spin-attack at them both, but the Dry Bones jumped back, and clubbed Link simultaneously, causing him to lose his power-up.

"PARTNER ATTACK!" Kirby yelled at the top of his voice, Sonic ducking and extending his quills to the point he was like an oversized spiked bush. The Dry Bones were stabbed by Sonic's many large spikes, getting floored by the pain they went through. "Haha! Awesome! They got spiked in the face!"

"Does doing this have any side-effects on me?" Sonic asked, getting up, his quills reverting to normal. "Or permanent changes?"

"Nope. You'll revert back to your normal self after the attack." Kirby stated. "At least, as far as I know from my experiences with Partner Attacks like this."

"You'd think spikes wouldn't really work against Dry Bones." Mario scratched his head in confusion. The Dry Bones continued crying out dramatically.

"Yeah, that's pretty shifty, if you ask me." Link asked as he ran away from a spike ball that had fell down from above.

"They're on to us! DUAL STRIKE WHILE WE CAN!" the Dry Bones said, leaping to their feet and attempting to club Link, but the spike ball chasing the swordsman made road-kill of the walking bone structures.

Another spike ball fell down just as the other disappeared through a hole in the wall.

"Good riddance!" Mario stopped panting, but started up again when another began pursuit due to further running. "And this guy has perfect timing!"

"It's a ball, Mario. It's genderless." Kirby said as Mario continued running, and so did Sonic when another ball fell down. "Run, my mount! RUN!"

"Seriously, how long are you going to keep this up?" Sonic moaned.

"Until I get bored of ya!" Kirby said as the spike ball chasing Mario disappeared through a hole in the wall… along with the one chasing Kirby and Sonic, only smashing a Dry Bones before making its exit through its hole, another falling down and this time locking on to Link.

The swordsman made tracks for the hole at the west side after dodging round to the spike ball's west, and dived to a side as he had guided the ball into the hole where the spike balls seem to leave the elevator at. A Dry Bones and a spike ball fell on board soon after a moment of peace, and so did a Star Coin which Mario grabbed.

Kirby dropped the Needle Power, and inhaled the Dry Bones and the bonerang he threw, getting Cutter.

"PARTNER ATTACK!" Kirby shouted, Sonic hurling two cutters upwards at a lightning speed, them hitting a block, then slicing it in two, though a Fire Flower had made it out in time… Sonic storing it as he caught it. Link jumped and grabbed a Star Coin by where the Dry Bones was, then ran away when the spike ball fell down.

"So this one allows me to throw sonic cutters? Cool!" Sonic said as they dodged TWO spike balls, seeing as another had fallen down further up.

"I'm getting sick of these balls…" Mario sighed as both balls had locked on to him and were making it absurdly hard to run away from them without getting cornered.

"And this elevator seems to go on forever… much like that staircase. Do we need some stars or something?" Mario asked. "And where's that somewhat amusing music?"

"Well, I guess this tower has its ups and downs…" Link shrugged with a cheesy grin on his face.

"This place even has repeating scenery! There's these two walls with the occasional to our left and right, and there's that flame that agitates me for some reason in the distance over there, between those two windows, all of which I see in the next five seconds!"

"Gee, don't let the elevator get you down…" Link said. "I know, this elevator is pushing my buttons, too, with all this."

"Aaaand to your left, we have some wall!" Kirby commentated like he was a tour guide out of boredom, even doing a good announcer voice. "To your right, we have some MORE wall!"

"Next time I'm taking steps to avoid elevators." Link grumbled as he sat on the elevator, now bored as he had nothing to do as Mario was busy with the spike balls.

Mario stopped, jumped, and the spike balls chasing him ran into each other, destroying each other with a loud clang. Mario wiped the sweat off his forehead, and

"Please mind the enormous spike ball that is now smashing through a wall of brick blocks as I speak, and have a nice day." Kirby continued as that just happened.

"There's no way we'll be able to clear that with a jump, and bombs probably won't destroy it… so, jump up to those conveniently placed blue platforms!" Kirby shouted. The heroes leaped off the elevator, and scaled the blue platforms to stay out of the ball's range.

They continued to jump up the blue platforms as the elevator and the spike ball on it chased them casually. They all met up with a split in vertical paths, and took the right one, Kirby snagging the Star Coin below the split in paths while on Sonic. There were just a few more hops, and they had made it to the top of the elevator shaft, the door above them.

The spike ball breaking through a few walls as it rolled on the elevator, and left the elevator room. The elevator had kept going and it slowly pushed the four up towards the door, but it didn't stop at the bottom of the door's level.

"It's gonna keep going! Quick, scramble to the door!" Sonic barked, running into the door before the elevator blocked him and Kirby out. Mario dived in, but Link couldn't fit at this point.

"Um, I'm screwed, uh, how do you stop this thing?" Link wondered. "Oh yeah, ELEVATION!"

The elevator stopped, and started going down now. Link was dropped off by the door on the blue platform it was on, and entered, meeting up with the others inside.

"Cue trapdoor here." Kirby said, as something opened suddenly and they all expected to fall through it… except it was just the door at the end Mario opened.

"Huh, no trapdoor this time. Odd." Mario said, walking through the door, and falling out of the air, landing on some cold ice platform. Link fell on him, followed by Sonic who was mounted by Kirby.

"They really have to make these falls accommodate multiple people." Mario groaned at the bottom.

"Hahaha! It's a tower of fools!" Bowser Jr cackled. "Now, I'll finish you here!"

He ran at the quartet, and they began battle.

. . .

Luigi decided to make his move now that Kamek had left to get something, and jumped out of the hole.

"Ack! It's the moss!" the fox cried, curling into a yellow furry ball. "Get away, you moving contradiction!"

Luigi flinched at being called a contradiction, but walked up to the invisible cage, and poked it.

"Huh, it's a magical invisible cage." Luigi said. "Looks lik-"

"Ack! It's one of those pesky hair-lipped plumbers, and they're trying to meddle, I see!" Kamek gasped as he floated back in, wondering what the noise was. Luigi jumped in shock, and Kamek glared at him. "I'll have to deal with you myself, then!"

Luigi gulped.

. . .

"So… got any more of my stuff?" Link asked as he missed his jump-attack, only for the dodging Bowser Jr to get stomped into the ground by Mario, and sliced by two quickly-thrown cutters.

"Like I'd tell you!" Junior said, tears leaking at the sheer pain of the cutters. Kirby clonked the kid on the head with his hammer, then proceeded to make Sonic throw more cutters.

To be frank, Bowser Jr didn't stand a chance.

. . .

Luigi dodged a magic blast with a roll, and jumped on to the invisible cage. Kamek shot another blast at him, and he jumped out of the way, the blast hitting the cage, and causing the force field to lower, and for the fox to be free.

"Thanks?" the fox thanked, unsure whose side Luigi was on. Luigi tipped his hat in acknowledgement, and proceeded to dive out of the way of another magic blast.

"Oh, boy. I'll have to attack eventually." Luigi realized. "B-Better get this over with…"

Luigi jumped at Kamek in an offensive attempt, but the Magikoopa flew out of the way on his broom, and beat Luigi down to the ground with his wand, before spawning two Goombas that distracted Luigi. With a pair of bounces, he had dealt with the minor threat, turning around only to get blasted in the face with a mix of magic.

. . .

Bowser Jr was beat, and burned a hole in the tower walls with an intense heat spat from his mouth.

"How the heck did he up his firepower so much?" Link gasped. "Especially after we wiped the floor with him?"

"With THIS, of course!" Bowser Jr said proudly, showing a rod with a red shiny ball with a burning flame inside. "A certain nut's little stick! It enhances my firepower, even when I'm not properly using it!"

"Hey, that's my Fire Rod!" Link grumbled as Bowser Jr jumped out of the tower before he could make a move. "Darn, he had all of my stuff!"

"Are you sure you didn't bring anything else with you?" Sonic asked.

"I think that was it. Well, I can't check for what I don't have if I don't know what I had." Link groaned. "Come on, let's tail 'em!"

. . .

Luigi hit the ground after missing Kamek again due to him being so nimble in the air, and took a blast to the back.

"WAH!" Luigi cried.

"I should probably help this person, seeing as they rescued me, and seem to be struggling now."

The fox turned his behind at Kamek, and started spinning his two tails like a fan, causing a powerful wind current to soon form, and blow Kamek off his broom. Luigi got up, and saw this opportunity to strike Kamek, causing him to howl in pain at getting stepped on. Kamek swatted the plumber away with his wand, and ran (which looked more like sidling) towards his broom in a hole.

Tails stopped this by turning his behind to face the moving target, blowing Kamek into the wall with the wind current he generated, and flooring him, also knocking him out briefly.

"He's down, I think." Luigi said, poking the knocked out Magikoopa as the fox approached. "Well, thanks for the help."

"So, uh, thanks, too?" the fox looked worried and confused.

"What's wrong?" Luigi asked.

"I'm sort of from another world." The fox explained. "My name's Tails, by the way."

"Well, I'm Luigi." The plumber said as the two shook hands. "And out of interest, how exactly did you get here?"

"I'm not sure, first thing I was in my lab and had noticed dimensional interference, and the next thing I knew I was grabbed by this hand and wound up captive by that weird creature." Tails shrugged.

"Well, it looks like he was looking for something in another world, which I wouldn't know what." Luigi sighed. "And seeing as you're stuck here for a while, I'll tell you about the Mushroom Kingdom."

"We should probably deal with the-" Tails was cut off by Kamek getting up, gasping at Tails being free, and jumped on his broom, disappearing in a shocked haste. "Never mind. Hey, he dropped something. Maybe THAT'S what he went for earlier."

Luigi walked over to it, picked it up, and found it to be a very large fang.

"Looks like an oversized Goomba Fang." Luigi said. "Why would he want that?"

. . .

**5-B**

Mario and Link burst at three Goombas, defeating them with ease, though Link did slip, fall off the ice blocks he was on, and bumped through a small crevice under an ice block, and wound up getting a Star Coin to the face as he collided into an ice hill.

"PARTNER ATTACK!" Kirby shouted, Sonic getting engulfed in flames and dashing forward through the air for a moment, finishing a green Paratroopa who was in the way. Mario followed them, and met up with Link when they jumped on to the ice hill he was on.

The squad jumped on to another slippery piece of ground, and met eye to eye with a new foe; a Snailcorn.

"Ew, it looks like a snail who can walk at a normal pace with those green feet of it, and that helmet looks tough. And that HORN. I don't want to be on the receiving end of that…" Link shuddered.

Mario jumped at the beast, bouncing off its head and clonking a Fire Flower out of the block he hit by accident, and it fell into the pit ahead. The impact of hitting the block floored Mario behind the Snailcorn, and Link had to dodge the enemy's charging attack before pushing him towards Sonic and Kirby.

Link picked Mario up, and jumped (struggling at it while he did so) over Kirby and Sonic blasting the Snailcorn into the same pit the Fire Flower fell into with their team attack, striking below the horn to avoid counterattacks.

Now that that was done, the heroes let Sonic and Kirby plough through a line of red Koopas on ice blocks, and then followed. A back-flip took them up to a P-Switch. Mario stepped on it, and saw that some of the blocks that fitted in the gaps between ice blocks were brick blocks, and thus turned to coins.

Mario stepped up to the challenge of getting to a Star Coin across the slippery and limited ice blocks, and carefully made small leaps over each gap as to not fall through and break a leg or something. Soon enough, he made it, and grabbed the coins floating in the way before they morphed back to normal, only for them to turn into blocks while in his possession, and make his pockets bulge out in the shape of blocks.

"Whoa, didn't think it'd actually do that." Mario gasped as he made his way back casually with the Star Coin. "Since when was there logic around here?"

Everyone but Mario shrugged in unison, and they slid down some icy hills like penguins, ramming through any Koopas in their way and leaping when they felt they were heading straight for endless pit. This movement sent all four of them rolling up an icy hill, barely making it up the upward slant before they rolled into a Snailcorn and powered the guy down a few levels, past a Star Coin and into a pit.

Link claimed the Star Coin, and they retracted their steps back to the icy hill, jumping on some ice blocks above where they were, and slashing through a green Paratroopa who tried to use a choke point to ambush them.

"No, now… the secret… revealed… above…" it groaned before disappearing.

"Well, it's secret-hunting time!" Link declared when they got on top of an icy platform where you could see the flag of the flagpole clearly, holding his sword up in the air, and then dragged Mario who was running to the flagpole back to where they were all gathered.

"How do you even know it's worthwhile to find?" Kirby asked. "It could just be a 'Mysterious chime!' secret where you hear a chime and see a number out of nowhere if you do something cryptic."

"Believe me, those are common in this place." Mario added, causing Link's proud grin to falter. "But finding those in the times I had to ended up giving me a Power Star."

"All more the reason for us to look briefly! He said up, so we're going up. Kirby and Sonic, go up. Me and Mario will examine this particular area VERY closely." Link ordered. "ICY the secret being above more likely, but it never hurts to check elsewhere, you know?"

Kirby floated Sonic up, and immediately, they saw an opening, and headed up through the gap in ice blocks, skating down the levels of blocks, and stopping before a low ceiling with a pair of blocks plugging the way through. Sonic threw Kirby off, and spin-dashed through the blocks, and into the pipe after it due to the slippery attributes of the ice blocks they were on.

Minutes later, Sonic came back, crestfallen as he spin-dashed under the low ceiling and was mounted once more.

"Just a secret exit." Sonic sighed. "To a pipe I doubt even went anywhere."

"I KNEW IT WAS WORTHLESS." Kirby grumbled, heading back to Link, who was holding Mario by the feet like a metal detector. The plumber was being told to sniff the ground by the flagpole.

"I don't appreciate being held like this, you know?" Mario said.

"The secret was a secret exit. Red flagpole and all." Sonic said. "It led to a pipe that was probably blocked."

"LAME." Link groaned, casually dropping Mario. "Who's idea was it to waste time for something so useless?"

Everyone shot Link a nasty look except for Mario, who was busy getting up.

"Uh…" Link sweat-dropped. "Oh, look! The flagpole!"

Link pointed at the flagpole that stood before them, even grabbing it and settling with 100 Points. Mario jumped and got 1000, Kirby and Sonic got 400 and 200.

And thus, after some walking, they stood before a pipe. Mario checked to see if it led somewhere, and it did, as he fell through it and into the underground. The others gasped, and followed…

* * *

**Once again, sorry about the wait, but hey, it's better than no chapter, and it's certainly faster than last time. :P**

**Also, Chapter 27... note that in your notepad for no particular reason.**


	24. Frozen Hillside

**That title's referencing something. Can you figure out what?**

* * *

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 24: Frozen Hillside

**5-C**

Mario hit the ground underground, and had the other three heroes pile on to him one by one.

"OK, that's gotten old now." Link stated sharply, openly showing how sick of this repetitive entrance into underground areas.

"Agreed." The other three groaned in the hero pile. They scrambled away from each other, getting ready to move out again. A Buzzy Beetle fell on Link's head from some blocks above.

"ACK! BEETLE ON MY HEAD!" Link cried, stumbling about as he jumped and crashed right into a Broozer, who boxed the Buzzy Beetle into the pit behind him, the Broozer also having left a path of destruction in its wake, and right-hooked Link in the face, knocking the Fire Flower he had on him off his person and into the pit behind him. "ACK, my nose… That was a horrible PUNCHLINE!"

The Broozer couldn't care less, and came at Link with an upper that sent the swordsman's senses out of whack for a split second. Mario jumped into the bleak scene, and stomped the Broozer down and out of the fight. Kirby flying over to finish the felled enemy. He dropped his current power, inhaled the poor guy, and got the Fighter Power.

"You OK?" Sonic asked as he walked over to Link, and gave him a Fire Flower that he got from a block nearby, powering Link up, and then following his other two allies over a few pits.

"Ugh, my head's still spinning." Link shook his head a bit, stuttering after them.

Mario and Kirby had reached a dead-end of brick blocks.

"So, what do you think, Mario? Should we SMASH this obnoxious wall, or find another way around? I opt for smashing."

Mario pounded a bunched up fist on his open hand, which was sign language for _LET'S-A-SMASH!_ so Kirby took a unique stance, as if he had a basketball in his hand he was trying to protect from the brick block wall, and charged up what most would call a hadouken, but in truth is actually just an ordinary focused blast not at all associated with fighting on the streets.

Kirby's focused blast was fully-charged, indicated by it turning red, and he hurled it at the brick blocks with an immense force. Mario and Kirby dived out of the way as brick blocks were battered, scattered, and tattered, to the duo's surprise, by another Broozer flailing his fists about like a high-speed windmill. The focused blast had been negated by the sheer power of the ambushing enemy.

Kirby came at the Broozer with a downward jump-kick, then punched him rapidly while the Broozer unsuccessfully rubbed the pain out of its eye. Once the Broozer had abruptly jumped back, winded and wanting to escape the pain, it banged the back of its head on some brick blocks, also breaking them.

The Broozer suddenly switched direction to moving towards Kirby and away from the horrible feeling getting clipped by hard brick blocks was, to get blasted by a focused blast, and sent through a buncha blocks that caged in a Star Coin. Kirby ended the guy with a sky-uppercut that sent him over the Star Coin and into the pit ahead.

It also sent a Fire Flower above where the Broozer first banged its head on some blocks flying out of its container, and it fell into the pit just a bit after the Star Coin. Sonic and Link winced at what they had watched, but rejoined Mario and Kirby as the puffball snatched the uncovered Star Coin.

Hopping over the pit the Fire Flower fell through, the squad were ambushed after a few brief moments of charging forward by a rouge Buzzy Beetle who clearly knew how to topspin upon landing before the heroes from the ceiling. They were all mowed down, and the Buzzy Beetle looked deeply content at the sight of that as who spun onwards into the distance.

"I feel like roadkill…" Link groaned as he and the others stumbled to their feet and trudged onwards, only for another Buzzy Beetle to start sliding across the ceiling in its shell, and dive-bombing the squad in a painful fashion as he was like a whirling fortress of steel and that usually hurt when it hurtled into your face and caused that pain thing.

"The next time one of those heads my way… things are gonna look ugly." Kirby grumbled as he led the team's march this time, and just after they climbed up a small wall, a Buzzy Beetle smashed them all in the face for the third time in a few minutes, knocking them down the small obstacle. "OK, that's it. I'm coming for you, punk!"

Kirby ran after the Buzzy Beetle, and the others just climbed up the obstacle again and walked away hastily, not wanting flying Buzzy Beetle parts knocking them out. They heard screaming and crying as they all hurried on to a platform that elevated them up to some higher ground.

They then hopped on one that took them down to lower ground, and they continued on, this time the heroes jumping over an incoming Buzzy Beetle and grabbing a Star Coin. They took the second platform upwards to some even higher ground, walked on through, then met eyes with a Broozer across a pit.

"He won't be bothering us anytime soon!" Kirby chirped, dusting his hands as he caught up with the others. "Hey, a punchy guy! TAKE THIS!"

Kirby shot a focused blast at the Broozer, but it pierced through three blocks in the way, and stopped at the fourth, and a beanstalk shot out, pushing a block above it out of the way as he powered itself upwards, out of the underground and into the sky.

"Well, looks like violence found us a secret." Mario said. "Huh."

They ignored the Broozer jumping rapidly at them and instead failing and rolling into the pit that was between the two sides of which a party was on each of, and cried out as the group climbed up the beanstalk.

. . .

They were outside as the beanstalk stopped just above a cloud. They jumped up some ground, powered through a Broozer and ignored a P-Switch, dropping down and noticing a sealed off area behind them. Kirby shot a focused blast at the blocks sealing it off, and they were destroyed, and revealed a Star Coin. Kirby inhaled it near him, then swiped it.

They jumped through a nearby hole, and landed on some blocks before the flagpole, and they all made their usual lunge at the flagpole. Mario got 800, Link got 400, Sonic got 4000, and Kirby got 1000.

Sliding down the flagpole like a monkey down a tree, they continued their snowbound trek on to some slippery and perilous icy ground.

**5-3**

"Whoa, swordsman on ice coming through!" Link cried as he slipped down the hill at the start, ramming through enemies like Goombas and Koopa Troopas trudging up it in an unintended fashion.

He soon ended up going with the flow, and by the time he got the feel of skating, he leaped off a jump and grabbed a Star Coin in mid-air as he spun and did a few flips, only for him to fall through a hole and land on a pipe.

The others caught up eventually, and they noticed an unblocked mini-pipe by a one-way pipe that wasn't accessible from this side.

"Anyone got any Mini Mushrooms?" Link asked. The others shook their heads together. Mario tried the bigger pipe, and was shot out of the pit, landing on the ice wobbly, the plumber after a struggle managing to regain his balance. Moments passed as the other three shot out of the cannon pipe, and all slipped and slid until they got their stability again.

They all skated across the ice in an amateurish fashion, until they tripped over a little bump in the ice, and managed to accidentally slide like penguins through a hole in the ice wall before them, and reach a stop just before a pit. Mario's head had stopped over the pit. He looked down at where he would've fallen if he weren't so lucky, and winced as he saw an ice bit fall down the pit.

He got up after it grew out of sight, and turned around to face his comrades who had broken a few brick blocks and found a Star Coin, the smashing led by Sonic. Mario jumped over the pit, and shoved a Snailcorn in the way into the pit behind it, and jumped over that very pit, and jumped over the Snailcorn on that one, and watched it fall down the pit behind him.

Mario jumped to the next platform, got a ready stance on, and flipped the Snailcorn overhead and into the pit right behind him. He then dived into a Koopa Troopa, and chucked the withdrawn enemy into the pit the last Snailcorn had fallen into.

"Mario, there's money up there!" Link pointed, as Mario was the only skilled wall-jumper in the party. Mario wall-jumped up two ice walls above him, collecting coins along the way, and grabbing a Star Coin in a small crevice before jumping back down.

They pushed back a Snailcorn into a little hole behind it with a combination of attacks, bounced off its helmet, and Sonic did a few flips before homing-attacking the Snailcorn on the ice before them and pushing the guy down the hill and into the flagpole, knocking it over.

"Whoa, I went a bit overboard…" Sonic scratched his head sheepishly as he skidded down the hill with the others and mowed down a few Koopa Troopas, jumping off before the abrupt end and pit. There was no flagpole to grab, so they just landed on the snow and stepped over the toppled pole and walked onwards.

Just as they reached a Ghost House when a blizzard started up, Mario heard a very, very, very faint ting sound. He shuddered at the realization of what that was, and shuddered even more at the sheer cold of the blizzard they were stuck in.

"I'm not too much of a BLIZZARD at getting through these houses, just so you know." Link giggled as they ran inside and the door closed on them.

* * *

**If you said it's referencing Kirby Air Ride or a Kirby game or just flat out said it was something Kirby, ding ding ding, you just earned some recognition! :D**

**Long wait, short chapter. Couldn't be avoided. .**


	25. Chilled Spirits

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 25: Chilled Spirits

**5-Ghost House**

"Ah… it's actually shockingly warm in here." Kirby sighed in relief.

"You know, you gotta wonder why something like a blizzard always forces us into these houses." Link stretched his arms. "First, the rain forces us into the beach one, then I chase the Scuttle Bugs into the forest one, and now a blizzard causes us to take shelter in this snow one."

"Maybe the ghosts that are usually in here make it so that always happens, and they actually have visitors to spook and mess with." Mario shrugged.

"Well, either way, this is the only way for us to progress without getting pelted with snowflakes and chunks of ice." Sonic just strolled onwards, eyes shut briefly. He was uppercut through the air, shrinking a bit and landing on a block that shot out a Mushroom that returned him to normal size. "Whoa, I just got sucker punched."

"Hey, look, it's one of those punchy guys!" Kirby pounced on the poor fighter. "Yay! More wrestling!"

As Kirby absolutely devastated the Broozer, the other three characters scaled the stairs near where the heavily one-sided brawl was happening. By the time they had made it to the second flight of stairs, another Broozer was flailing its red-gloved fists about, wanting to dish out some pain as it charged down the stairs.

Mario leaped over it, and attempted to charge a fireball to scorch the boxer, but his plan went all wrong as the Broozer did a U-turn and socked Mario in the face, knocking the plumber down and the firepower out of him.

"Looks like your plan BACKFIRED!" Link howled as he came to the rescue and slashed the Broozer in the back. Sonic jumped over Link and homing-attacked the Broozer, knocking it down also. Mario jumped to his feet and leaped overhead the fighter and ground-pounded it into oblivion.

After a very high-pitched wail was heard from downstairs, Kirby came running up to the others, looking very pleased with himself. The three before the puffball just shared a slight look of terror at what Kirby did to the enemy below. Regardless of their attempts to get any thoughts of how Kirby utterly massacred the opposition, they finished climbing this flight of stairs, and climbed the flight above them.

Kirby punched his way through the lower route blocked by… blocks, of course, and flew up to a Star Coin after a short jog. As he did this, the other blockade of blocks that was the higher route, clearly, its name defined by how its flooring was the ceiling of the lower route, a Broozer punched his way through the remaining higher blockade, jumping down and knocking the three heroes over.

Mario rolled down the stairs purposefully to avoid getting left-hooked or something, and Sonic low-swept the Broozer, knocking it off its feet and leaving him open to a jump-attack that was followed up with a spin-attack, Mario ending this guy with a jump out of nowhere, and the higher route to be clear.

By the time they had started to traverse the higher route, Kirby had once again returned to the group, and they climbed a couple of uneventful staircases. Halfway up the second one, though, Link had spotted a door in the upper corner behind them.

Kirby picked up Link, and hurled him at the door in a rash fashion. Luckily, Kirby had an insanely good throwing arm, this being amplified greatly in his Fighter form, and Link had curved and hit the platform the door was on rather softly, him getting up without a scratch and entering the door.

"You should play for my Mario Fireballs sometime." Mario said as they sat on the stairs and waited for Link to come back with items or info.

. . .

Link jumped on some blocks to his left, and used them as a stepping stone to grab a Star Coin. When he landed by the door again, he noticed that debris were flying everywhere, and there was an insane amount of growling going on. Before he knew it, there were six Broozers coming at him, with a clear sense of bloodlust.

Link wasn't hanging around.

. . .

Link had flung himself out of the room, and fell off the small platform, to land on Kirby's head luckily.

"My head is NOT a safety trampoline." Kirby grumbled, hurling Link off, past a flight of stairs above them and into the wall above a few blocks. Mario and Sonic, along with Kirby walked up the stairs to see where Link ended up.

He was slumped against the wall on a platform above some blocks, groaning a bit while not moving.

"Eh, he's OK." Sonic realized. "He's surprisingly durable, so he can take in a lot of punishment."

"Too bad you guys can't take much, if any at all PUNishment. I love the stuff." Link snickered as he got up. "Also, there's one of the boxer guys there."

Mario, Kirby and Sonic quickly jumped up to where Link was, then waited for the Broozer to spot them so they could pound it with various attacks, of which it fell to quite quickly. A dash up the small staircase the creature was once on lead them to another of the kind.

"Is this some kind of Ghost Gym?" Link had to ask as they took it down with relative ease as its back was turned. They started climbing a really big flight of stairs.

"With all these boxers here, probably. Though I'm shocked there's actually no ghosts in here for once." Sonic jumped off the flight of stairs and landed on a group of blocks. "Not that I'd like any to be here, those things are pesky."

"What exactly are you doing?" Link asked as Sonic bashed some invisible blocks which he had no clue where really there, and was floored by the sudden impact.

"Secrets!" Sonic shouted, pointing at the three blocks. Kirby flew over, and swung his hammer wildly in the area above the three newly revealed blocks, thus revealing one block with a vine shooting out of it. "Anyway, I'll go see what's up here, and I'll catch up with you guys later."

Sonic had climbed the vine until he saw a blockade of which a Broozer wrecked its way through on the other side, Sonic climbing just high enough to avoid the flailing arms, and crossed the debris the fallen enemy had left, and entering the door at the end of this small secluded area, just as shouts from Kirby were heard, and a few wails followed.

. . .

Sonic came out on to an elevator, that suddenly whizzed up. Sonic was on edge, expecting some kind of trick to played on him while he was on it. Frankly, the ghosts of this manor apparently weren't in the mood for tricks, and thus left Sonic with a nice clean lift up.

At one point, Sonic saw an opening in front of him, and lunged at it, falling off the elevator and pummeling the Splunkins nearby with a few spin-dashes and homing-attacks as he moved into a little area to the right of the elevator shaft. Sonic jumped into the little nook one of the Splunkins were in, and snatched the Star Coin from there, before bashing the block that he figured was a vine block, and climbed up the vine that shot out of it.

Soon enough, he reached the end of the road… or vine, as it would be properly put, and climbed up a few platforms before making it to the top of the room, where there was a Boo and a door. Sonic made a break for the door before the Boo could even do that devilish grin of getting a chance to spook someone.

. . .

Sonic came out of the house before a red flagpole, sighed, and ran around the house to find a way back in as the door he came out from was locked, the outside side here strangely enough not being in a blizzard as the other side was earlier.

He found the other heroes climbing a staircase of rock to a black flagpole, and boosted past them all up the staircase, and hurled himself over the edge, clipping the flagpole's tip with his feet and landing in a pretty awe-inspiring fashion, basically getting what would be a 1-UP.

"Some entrance." Link said, a grin on his facing growing. "But it's nothing to STAIR and gawk at."

Kirby burst into laughter at the pun, while Mario kept a straight face as they all jumped off the top of the staircase and clipped the top, though only Kirby managed to as they had jumped off at the same time and the top wasn't exactly the biggest target to clip, so while Kirby got a 1-UP, Mario and Link fell to the floor past the flagpole. Kirby floated down to them with a proud smile on his face.

"That would never end well." Sonic shook his head.

. . .

Luigi and Tails had escaped the fortress, fang in hand, and were now making their way through the snowy fields.

"So, where exactly are we headed?" Tails asked.

"To be honest, I don't know. I haven't really known where I was since I was captured quite a while ago." Luigi shrugged sheepishly. "If anything, I'm just looking for my brother."

"How exactly would you know where he is, anyway?" Tails asked.

"I don't; I'm just assuming he's heading towards Bowser's territory through his castles, towers and fortresses, seeing as the swordsman who was with Mario said he was heading for the castle when I met him in the ghost house." Luigi explained.

"Well, I guess that's all we CAN do." Tails grabbed Luigi's hands. "Though running through the snow wouldn't really be too useful, so…"

"WAH!" Luigi cried as Tails spun his tails and raised into the air, his tails keeping him in mid-air as he pulled Luigi off the ground and started flying him across the snowy plains. "Y-You can fly?"

"Yep. My tails can help me do that. By the way, do you know a way I can get back to my world?" Tails asked.

"Well, that gang of people who met up with Mario before I was captured seemed incredibly foreign… considering I've never seen what looked like a blue walking bush, a pink ball and that swordsman in the Mushroom Kingdom before. The swordsman referred to the other two as Kirby and Sonic but I don't know which name goes to who, and I never got the guy's name himself."

"Well, the bush you're talking about was a hedgehog, and a close friend of mine called Sonic. The pink ball is probably Kirby, though I've never really met him before, nor did I with the swordsman. I think Sonic calls him Link. If I can find Sonic, I could probably get back home if that dimensional interference doesn't block us."

"Well, I think they're all scattered from how I only met the swordsman in the woods, so I'm not sure how we'll find Mario and Sonic… but hopefully they've joined up by now, seeing as Mario and Link were with each other when I was captured." Luigi hoped.

"And because Link travels with Sonic and Kirby, and Link was and probably is now travelling with Mario, if we find Mario, we find Sonic, and vice versa. So I guess we have a reason to stick together, huh?"

"Doing that would make both our lives easier." Luigi sighed, relieved to actually have a solid travelling companion… as they saw a building in the slightly foggy blizzard that was now developing. Tails dropped Luigi, and they continued on foot.

"It's too risky to fly; we'll have to go on foot." Tails stated as they approached the structure in the distance.

. . .

**5-4**

Mario and friends had traversed through this area quite quickly, managing to snag two of the three Star Coins per location, and making their way to the third.

Before them was a red mushroom, the group with prior knowledge that they would soar up into the skies if they stepped on this as it extended vertically. Mario hopped on to it, and leaped off quickly before it took him past a platform blocking off the Star Coin from above. The others followed his lead, and Mario claimed the coin. Dropping through the little hole in front of them, they were met with an array of red and yellow mushrooms.

"Well, this could be nasty." Kirby said. "Raising and lowering mushrooms as far as the eye can see. CHEAT MODE ACTIVATE!"

Kirby inhaled his three allies, and jumped on to the first mushroom, a red mushroom, and getting raised into the air. He hopped on to the yellow mushroom ahead, and was lowered downwards, but not so much that he couldn't fly in a struggling way towards the flagpole and land on the ground before it. Kirby touched the pole (at the 200 mark) and walked a bit, before stopping.

Kirby spat out his contents, or at least, the ones he had recently gulped, them now being slobbered in Kirby spit.

"A warning would've been nice… blah!" Sonic shook off the spit, disgusted, Mario and Link doing the same.

"Hey, look, a castle!" Kirby pointed out, ignoring the comment and the ones that followed. Everyone else who wasn't already looked as Kirby ran towards the building.

"Didn't see that coming." Sonic admitted, strolling towards the castle.

"Why do I get a bad feeling about this?" Link wondered aloud, doing the same.

"Yeah, I'm getting bad vibes from this castle, too." Mario added, chasing them in pursuit when he realized he had been left behind. Now all before it, they tried opening the door.

"It's locked." Link noted.

"When logic fails, violence prevails!" Kirby said, upper-cutting the door open and dashing in.

"Well, I always thought that stuff wasn't the answer."

"Huh, I thought you were the guy who hacked at anything that looked at you funny." Sonic grinned.

"That's coming from the guy who mows stuff down like a wrecking ball." Link walked inside.

Little did they know what craziness would occur in this castle.

. . .

"Looks like that castle was a dud." Luigi sighed, disappointed as Tails flew them out through a hole in the wall at the top that looked like it had been burned open. "It was completely empty that whole ride up."

"And that strange burned hole in the wall makes me wonder what happened there." Tails added. "Well, at least from this height we can actually see where the castle is."

"But it's still pretty far away, seeing as it's just a faint outline. I can't even tell if that IS the castle." Luigi sighed again.

"Either way, we're at least making progress, especially since Mario and his group seem to be clearing up the enemies en route." Tails noticed. "So now enemies are scarce and delays are few. This is really helping us catch up, if you ask me."

"You know, I've been wondering… Kamek said he was trying to get something… and I wasn't in. It makes me shudder to think this is true, but I think he might have reached into my world and pulled me here." Tails said.

"Eh?" Luigi didn't quite get what Tails was getting at.

"He likely was trying to extract something or someone else from my world, but failed and got me instead. For all I know, however he did that may be what was causing that dimensional interference I read on my machine before I was swiped."

"Well, if we can stop him fast enough, we won't have to deal with enemies from another world. And if he can reach into your world somehow, then would he be able to reach into OTHER worlds?" Luigi realized. "Who knows what terrifying fiends he could grab to use against us! It could be lethal!"

"Then we really don't want to deal with that." Tails took out the fang from earlier. "And now, about this fang…"

"That's a Goomba Fang. An oversized one, this one seems to be." Luigi recalled from a book he read while idling during one of Mario's adventures at home.

"Well, Kamek said something about a restoration. That also worries me."

"If we want answers, we'll have to find him." Luigi gulped. "And quickly, so we don't get slowed down by other-worldly forces."

"Too right." Tails had a worried look on his face; all this likely wouldn't bold well, and they both knew too well that they were in a huge mess, as much as they didn't want to admit it…

* * *

**The plot thickens! *gasp***

**Regardless, you're in for some interesting chapters. **


	26. Skating on Thin Ice

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 26: Skating on Thin Ice

**5-Castle**

"I should keep a pun log, I've forgotten which puns I've said in the past on this adventure." Link pondered, nearly walking into a pit if it weren't for Sonic grabbing his arm just in time.

"You don't want to get lost in thoughts in danger-filled castles, especially in one with pits and conveyor belts." Mario warned, shocked at the carelessness. "Mamma mia…"

Kirby dropped his Fighter Power, and grabbed Link, carrying him over to the next bit of stable land over a conveyor belt. Mario jumped on the conveyor belt that was skipped, and did a forward roll long jump that sent him off the conveyor belt at high speeds, and he managed to get high enough to clonk a Dry Bones on the stable land Link was dropped off at on the head.

Mario continued to fly over the belts with the gained height of bouncing off the skeleton earlier, all of which had a Piranha Plant on there, however the heck that happened. Mario only passed over one and a half conveyor belts, as the block above the second one ironically blocked his mini flight, winding him and causing him to land before the Piranha Plant on the conveyor.

Mario used his Fire Flower, and blasted the creature to smithereens before doing the same with another that fell from the third higher smaller belt ahead. He kept up a pace fast enough to not end up falling off the left side, yet at the same time not overpowering the belt's speed.

Sonic, Kirby and Link waited out the Piranha Plant on the first belt after where they were, watching it fall off the conveyor belt to its doom.

"I deeply question how those things got on those conveyor belts in the first place." Link stated as they caught up to Mario. A little hop brought them up to the third conveyor belt, and they all stayed on it until the Piranha Plant making life harder to get a Star Coin on a fifth conveyor belt above the fourth which happened to be right next to a Star Coin above a small patch of stable ground decided to fall into the pit helped by the belts.

"Wait, it's going to land…" Sonic realized a moment too late, as the Piranha Plant landed on a belt leading right rather than left as they had all assumed, and it squashed the Star Coin upon falling off the belt and on to the ground. Mario jumped on to the fifth belt, jumped a bit to the right on to the sixth belt, and took aim.

Mario sniped the Piranha Plant with a fireball, burning it. Link jumped over to Mario, and snagged the Star Coin with his boomerang, the fire on it not messing up the shiny look of it. Sonic and Kirby hopped and leaped towards them, the group now ready to proceed across several masses of stable land of varying heights, each of which with a Dry Bones on it, however.

Mario made the jumps easier by stomping each Dry Bones and using the boost from the finishing jump to shoot up or down to the next one, and do the same with that until he had defeated all five on stable land masses and a bonus sixth on a conveyor belt after before landing on another yet uninhabited land mass. There was an applause that the source of which couldn't be identified, but there were surely Toads cheering at least.

Link and Kirby took this moment of the enemies' state to quickly catch up to Mario just as the Dry Bones re-formed themselves (except for the sixth as during its period of not moving after being turned into a pile of bones, the conveyor belt it had been walking on easily overpowered what little if any movement it was making and threw it overbelt.

Sonic, now that the five Dry Bones had gotten up, did an Action Chain across the five literal boneheads to get to the conveyor belt, and jumped over to Mario and the others, Link of which who found that act of Sonic's a bit unnecessary and time-wasting.

"What? It looked like fun when Mario was doing it!" Sonic said defensively.

"It's actually pretty fun, to be honest." Mario confirmed, claiming a Fire Flower from the block he checked above his head due to a random and rather stupid intuition that there was something in that block. Link sighed and dropped on to the bottom of three belts, hacking through the Dry Bones there and fighting his way up two belts to the right which had an endless wave of Dry Bones coming at him.

"So many bones!" Link groaned as he pointed his sword forward and broke their stance barely in time to jump over the pile of bones they were reduced to with a few slashes.

Soon enough during that horribly exhausting uphill march, he slipped on to a spring that fell off the second conveyor belt before he had also, and the swordsman luckily was bounced into a small crevice with a Star Coin.

Mario, Sonic and Kirby were actually lagging behind Link so they didn't have to deal with the waves of Dry Bones, but soon had to with him in the crevice and all. Sonic was leading their charge, attacking with a Boost that sent them to piles.

Link jumped out of the crevice, landing on Kirby miraculously, and leaping off him before he chucked him off.

"I am NOT a safety trampoline, get that fact into your head." Kirby growled as they had got through the wave and there were no more spawns. A Piranha Plant was on a conveyor belt below the one the four had fallen to, but it had fallen into the pit to the side. Running under the low ceiling, they jumped out over a conveyor belt and on to some icy ground.

Sonic saw the Piranha Plants about to block their easy path ahead, and grabbed everyone, then dashing forward before the botanical enemies squashed them or blocked the easy path forward. The sprint ended with the four barreling over a pit past some icy ground where a massive Piranha Plant was falling, narrowly dodging some chomps from the dangerous creature.

"Don't do that again…" Link panted, exhausted.

"But if we didn't try that, we would have taken HOURS to get through that mess back there." Sonic explained his actions. "And you know me, never a dull moment."

"Mamma mia, that was abrupt…" Mario got up, and shook off his shock.

Kirby gasped at the hole above a block above, and floated up through the hole. As he ventured the tight natural air vents up there, Mario, Link and Sonic smashed through the Dry Bones that were in the way as the climbed up some ledges and had the door in sights. By now, Kirby had made it to a gate in the shaft, and broke through the bars of it, and fell back into the main room of the castle.

Mario knocked a Dry Bones to a pile while Link and Sonic ganged up on a bigger Dry Bones. Kirby landed on a conveyor belt, and darted across it towards the Star Coin ahead, then charging at the lone block he after snatching a Fire Flower from it to become Fire Kirby used to shoot upwards in a burst of fire through a ledge that allowed no passing from above and only from below, where he landed before the boss door.

By then, Link and Sonic had toppled the tyrant that was the large Dry Bones, and the victorious duo along with Mario scampered over to Kirby and grabbed him, whisking him through the door and not looking back in case that monster got up again.

. . .

Luigi and Tails had the castle in their sights. Life out in the snowy plains was a lot easier for them as they traversed at day, and took shelter in abandoned igloos at night, and their light travel got them far daily as they flew or walk depending on conditions.

"So, you think we've caught up?" Luigi asked.

"No, but seeing as the footprints look new, they're likely to have been here recently." Tails said. Luigi looked at the snow and noticed footprints for the first time out here. He instantly felt like an idiot at not realizing that. "There's four sets of footprints, too. They must be all together now."

Luigi noticed one of the sets look like his brother's own footprints from when they went to the beach a few months back. The other three sets were unfamiliar, though, especially the circle-shaped footprints.

By this point, they were getting very close to the castle, it was in clear sight now… even if it was camouflaged in snow now. Tails' ears pricked up suddenly, the shock causing him to drop Luigi.

"I hear something!"

"What?" Luigi asked, swallowing the snow in his mouth as it melted.

"It sounds like… conveyor belts!"

"That's certainly helpful to know…" Luigi said half-sarcastically. "Well, maybe we'll catch up to Mario and the others if we enter."

"Hopefully…"

. . .

Down the ice staircase the four went, and into the big room here. There was no Bowser Jr in sight as they all looked around.

"Where's that kid?" Link asked, walking into the middle.

"Hey, don't you remember what happened back-" Mario was too late. The massive Piranha Plant boss known as Petey Piranha crashed into the ice floor from the ceiling high up and gobbled up Link whole. Kirby looked horrified, Sonic had his eyes open wide and Mario just shrugged; he tried, and he knew all too well that Link was only trapped in his belly and not a goner if they defeated the botanical boss.

"That's pretty gruesome…" Sonic was still shocked at the sudden lunch as he side-stepped away from Petey as he roared fiercely. "And what IS THAT THING?"

"Hey, I eat enemies all the time, and sometimes you guys. You should all be used to this devouring thing." Kirby darted towards Mario and Sonic in the corner, and got ready for battle by hurling himself at Petey.

"That's Petey Piranha. He's this massive mature walking Piranha Plant who I've battled over various situations." Mario explained.

"Do you think we can get Link back?"

"Most likely if we actually pummel him into submission." Mario answered. "Besides, it normally takes hours for someone to digest a sandwich, let alone a fully grown swordsman and all his weapons."

Petey tried swatting the attacking Kirby away with his large leaf hands, but Kirby dodged and ducked and even when he was batted away, he just kept coming back. The overwhelming ambushes of the puffball eventually caused Petey to stress out, try to run back a bit, but he slipped and fell on his back, exposing his belly button; an outie.

Mario remembered how he had defeated the beast in the past, and jumped towards Petey's belly, ground-pounding his belly button and causing the boss to roar in pain.

"THAT'S how you defeat this guy? Talk about… unique." Sonic gawked.

"I still can't STOMACH the fact that I've been digested!" Petey roared, except the voice was rather meek.

"Hey, that's Link!" Kirby noticed. "Unless we're dealing with a pun-cracking plant here."

"Now, a pun-cracking monster that spawns water would be my worst nightmare. A pun-cracking plant… not so much."

"I hate to PLANT the idea into your head in such a fashion, but beating me out of this guy like Mario would be advised rather than chatting!" Petey roared as he jumped and tried crushing Mario into a pancake with a stomp. Mario got on his back on the ice, and whirled away like a Koopa Troopa on its back, dodging stylishly and leaping to his feet when he reached a stop.

"That's definitely not the plant." Sonic confirmed as he ran at Petey and homing-attacked his belly, sending Petey into a flurry of slipping, which ended with Kirby smashing him with the hammer on to his back again. Mario ground-pounded the belly button when it decided to flash red a bit, and Petey roared again, getting back up and hurling Mario off of him.

Petey then blasted some bad breath at Kirby, knocking him out and eradicating the Fire Flower he had on him, and doing the same to Mario when he got up. Sonic tried to homing-attack him, but the plant flew into the air and started shooting goop down to the ice. Sonic was the only one standing at this point, and he was the only one who could do something.

Sonic couldn't reach Petey, but he could snipe him from up there with the goop and knock him out with his BO (breathe odor), so things were heavily in that Piranha Plant's favour. Sonic realized he had to use the Fire Flower at this stage if he wanted to survive.

"Looks like there's no avoiding what will happen if I use this Fire Flower… here goes." Sonic used the Fire Flower he had on him as he ran away from more spitfire. His blue fur suddenly spiked up, and turned red with a flash. The fur stood on end at the moment of flashing, but reverted to their normal arrangement moments after. Sonic started levitating above the floor a bit, and he looked a fair bit more menacing.

"Whoa, I was missing out. Let's see what I can do!" Sonic held his hand up, causing a barrier of fire to appear and block another blast of mud aiming for him, and when Petey dropped out of the air towards him in an attempt to pierce the barrier, except Sonic boosted into the air, engulfed in fire as he knocked Petey out of the air and on to his feet, slipping about a bit as he struggled to stay steady.

Sonic put his hands as if he was protecting a basketball, and charged up a fire blast from a high point in the room. The ball of fire radiated with power and hope with every second it got to charge, and when it was just too much to contain, he shot it at Petey with all his might… for the boss to just gulp it down like a double decker sandwich eaten in one bite.

Sonic looked crestfallen, and instead fell towards the ground and hit Petey in the face, knocking him on his back and boosting into his belly button upon mid-air recovery. Petey roared in pain once again, and looked too defeated to fight on. He started glowing white, him sparking as Mario and Kirby got up again. He tried to get up, but to no avail, he disappeared, defeated, with Link and the key out of the room being left behind.

"I can't DIGEST what I just went through." Link snickered as he shook off the slime. "Though really, that was gruesome. You should've seen how gnarly it was in there. Nasty!"

"Talk about thankful." Sonic sighed, worn out.

Sonic nodded as the firepower disappeared, likely from exhaustion, and they opened the door with the key, for Bowser Jr to sweep them all off their feet as he came in while tossing himself in shell form, snag one of Petey's petals that remained, and slide out and pop out right next to Peach, grabbing her before she could even blink.

"The heck was that?" Link asked.

"None of your business!" Bowser Jr barked, running out of the castle towards the canyon. Mario and friends began to follow, but Kamek flew in front of them when they got outside and blocked them off.

"Not so fast, you meddling goodies! I've come to ruin your day! This'll slow you down for sure!" Kamek shouted, waving his wand about, causing the ground to rumble.

"Whoa!" Sonic asked. "It's an earthquake!"

A snow fort rose out of the ground, and a gate surrounded the heroes, the door to the castle behind them locking and thus leaving their only choice forward through the fort.

"The puffball will feel especially welcome inside that fort… for reasons you wouldn't expect." Kamek cackled as he disappeared. "You'll be seeing an old friend inside, I guarantee you."

"That fort feels… different from all the others, even from outside it." Kirby said, a bit worried. "It feels… like I have a special connection to it., as if I feel more attached to it."

"Is that some kind of enchantment?" Sonic wondered.

"…Odd." Mario found that the only word to say about that.

Kirby found himself walking towards the fort, curious about it and eager to figure out what was so different about it. Mario, Link and Sonic cautiously followed, unbeknownst to them they were being watched.

* * *

**I personally like the next chapter, for reasons you can likely already tell already. I'm also fond of my revised plan for World 6, which you'll be seeing quite soon.**


	27. Castle Conquest

New Super Mario Bros X

Chapter 27: Castle Conquest

Kamek dropped the barrier he had set up as soon as the heroes were in for a good while.

"They'll surely never try going back out to find another route, so I shan't be wasting my precious magic. Now, I need to eradicate those two meddlers who defeated me in that castle before they figure out too much. I can't have them alert anyone else of my plans…" Kamek mumbled to himself as he drifted through the air of the snowy plains.

Luigi and Tails lay hiding in an abandoned snow cavern hidden in the snow as they overheard Kamek.

"It's him again!" Luigi whispered to Tails, waking him up from his nap. "Don't panic, and don't move, either. He might hear us."

Although Luigi was saying this calmly, he was trembling, struck with fear. Tails silently acknowledged these instructions and was as still as a statue, just liked the scared plumber had asked. Kamek continued to roam the general area they were in.

. . .

**Castle Dedede**

Bursting through the front doors, the squad encountered a batch of Waddle Dees, some of them equipped with spears or hammers. The hall they had entered had periodic foundations to the sides and a red carpet stretching through this first room, generally.

"Are these bad guys?" Mario had to ask. "They look foreign."

"These are the Goombas of my world, these Waddle Dees. They just don't go down if you step on them." Kirby explained as he inhaled the first wave of Waddle Dees who literally ran into the suction vacuum.

"Friends! Man the harpoons!" the last Waddle Dee in the wave cried before getting sucked up even after his wasted efforts of trying to escape the inhalation as Mario stomped him knocking him over and making him easy prey for Kirby. Then the hall was clear for a bit until they had to deal with a few Waddle Doos on some stairs.

"Defense formation, hold strong!" the apparent leader of them signified by the helmet on her head said as they sprayed beams up and down which made a unbreakable wall of beam when they had all started shooting. The leader of them blared out a question for the guys in the next room. "How are those harpoons back there?"

"All set up, Commander Wah Do!" what sounded like a Waddle Dee shouted. "If they come this way, we'll spike 'em to smithereens with our hardened Gordos!"

"Good! Bring the units forward! You can hit them in safety now and we'll not lose another soldier!" Commander Wah Do ordered. "You boys keep the shield up, I'll go help move the harpoons!"

"Oh gosh, they have harpoons, guys." Link looked a bit scared now. "THEY HAVE HARPOONS!"

"Wow, these minions really stepped up their game. Normally they'd mindlessly charge at me without thinking, but these guys are all set up and everything. Anyway, we'll be sitting ducks if they keep this wall up long enough… Link!" Kirby shouted. "You can be our bait!"

"I don't like the sound of that… I'm gonna get battered by those beams, aren't I?" Link gulped.

"Not at all. You've got that shield, unlike the rest of us." Kirby reassured him.

"Why don't you just inhale them?"

"I have no interest in sucking up that mass of beams and Waddle Doos. They won't be too good for my health, all those beams." Kirby said. Sonic snickered at the remark about Kirby's health. Link sighed, sucked it up and held his shield forth, sidling forward into the beam-fire.

"AHAHA! Look at that fool, walking into range!" one of the Waddle Doos firing howled, causing most of the others to burst into laughs and chuckles, chortles included, with some slight guffawing from the left flank. This lowered the amount of pressure they put into the beams, and made it easier for Link physically, but more painful mentally.

Link continued to push forward through the defenses, and eventually reached some of the front Waddle Doos. He shield-bashed them before they could try anything, and sent them rolling away. A hole was found in the defenses from the other three heroes' views, and they charged forward, leaping through the hole and smashing away the Waddle Doos from behind enemy lines with a flurry of kicks, stomps, pounds, slashes, hammers and cutters.

Soon enough, only the commander was left. Wah Do was sweating bullets as she was surrounded.

"Oh, boy. I'm screwed." She admitted. "Are the harpoons ready?"

"Yes m'am! Test firing now!" a Waddle Dee called from the next room. A Gordo came flying out of the door, knocking it down and pelting Mario on the head and likely knocking him out. "Test fire complete! Was target RED hit?"

"Heck yeah! You just saved my behind! You sir, get a promotion!" Wah Do made a break for it up the rest of the stairs and over the knocked down door.

"They have GORDO HARPOONS?" Kirby gasped. "That's not going to be leaving any faces the way they were before getting hit. Mario's a lucky one. It just knocked him upside the head… could've done much worse."

Kirby approached Mario and slapped him awake, the plumber having a rude awakening. Kirby pointed at the open door with a hasty look on his face. Mario was hurled on to his feet and Kirby dashed into the next room, the others following momentarily.

"Kirby really wants to know what's going on, it seems." Link noted.

"If you found large traces of your world in a totally different one suddenly, you'd want answers too." Sonic shook his finger. "Especially when it's this large."

"Quick, they're coming! FIRE!" Wah Do cried, blasting another Gordo the heroes' way as soon as they made it through the door. Mario did a barrel roll under the spiked ball of destruction, Link lunged into the wall, Sonic did a jumped over it, and Kirby slid under it. "Shoot! We missed! FIRE AGAIN!"

"But Commander! Aimlessly firing won't get us-" the Waddle Dee who had foolishly spoken out against the commander was back-handed to the floor.

"Any more objections? They're charging at us, and we're going down if we don't fight!" Wah Do explained.

"Not so fast, Wah Do." Commander Gordon walked in, the bandana Waddle Dee indirect specialist armed with a Gordo bazooka spoke firmly. "I won't be letting my men go down like this. If we run, we can set up another ambush later along the line. Now, we are moving, and that's FINAL, missy."

Wah Do was beat, and the Waddle Dees were pleased to not be in for a beating anytime soon. Wah Do reluctantly followed Gordon, and the Waddle Dees charged after them, just in time as Mario and the others had made it to where they once stood.

Gordon side-stepped out of the way of all the goons and then fired his bazooka right at Kirby, sending him flying into the others and he whistled.

"Bonkers, deal with these pests!" Gordon ordered when the large hammer-wielding monkey crashed down before him. The creature grunted in acknowledgement, and turned to his enemies, roaring at them. "That should slow you down for sure. This isn't your normal decoy boss."

Gordon ran after his comrades as Kirby got off his allies and took out a hammer of his own.

"Who's the monkey?" Sonic asked.

"Bonkers. I guess you could call him a mini-boss I've knocked upside the head several times." Kirby explained as he rushed at Bonkers just like he was running at him. Kirby back-flipped over Bonkers while not facing him at the same time smashing Bonkers in the face with his hammer, the whole process looking rather impressive.

The monkey shook it off, however, and swatted a speeding Sonic away from him with perfect timing, and chucked Link into the wall. Kirby came running back and used his cutter to sweep Bonkers off his feet, but was pancaked by the large mass that their enemy was. Mario kicked him in the face with both feet, springing off of him but not fast enough to get grabbed and swung, in the same fashion Mario would swing Bowser.

"Now I know how Bowser feels…" Mario groaned as he slid down the wall. Bonkers leaped into the air and pounded Link with his two hands upon this grand impact, stopping the sword beam he was charging up.

"Something feels odd about this Bonkers… like he's a super-powered version of him." Kirby noticed as he stretched and spun to un-pancake himself. He gasped when he noticed Bonkers' hammer looked pink, had a star on it, and was glowing, not to mention Bonkers had a star on his forehead and red trimmings on his sleeves that looked like flames. "This is SUPER Bonkers!"

"Who?"

"No time to explain, just be warned he can be lethal." Kirby yelped when he was golfed out of the room with a soft swing of Bonkers' hammer. Mario stomped Bonkers' head rapidly with swift motion, dodging any of his target's attempts to get rid of him while at the same time keeping the feet on him with each bounce.

An exhausted Link performed the Great Spin attack on Bonkers, slashing his torso rapidly as he spun, sword extended out and hitting its mark, this also doing stuff, and as Bonkers was busy trying to swat Mario out of the sky, he couldn't deal with Link, but could try and deal with Sonic who had started homing-attacking Bonkers, striking in ball form from unpredictable locations, and thus being incredibly hard to take down.

Bonkers took out another hammer, held it in the other hand, and clapped them together while under this intense beat-down, causing a massive wave of energy that stunned all the heroes and froze them for a moment (which even suspended Mario and Sonic in mid-air), but before he could do anything about them in that time, Kirby had rushed at him, doing what Link called the Great Spin attack, except he was hovering in mid-air and it was with a hammer.

With a great connection, it sent Bonkers flying into the barricaded door, leaving a large hole in it yet the defeated monkey bounced off the destruction he had made to the door and lay there, defeated. Kirby tried inhaling him, but to no avail. Mario ground-pounded him hastily, not wanting to have to go through all that again as the enemy exploded and a star bounced around the room, a picture of a hammer on it.

Kirby tried inhaling the star, but it was out of reach as he bounced into the first room and elsewhere, likely never to be seen again.

"Aw, those things do really cool things, too." Kirby moaned.

"Well, we better get moving." Sonic said, motivating the others to dart into the next room, only for them to be bombarded with a storm of Gordos. Sonic and Kirby were able to dodge the spiked enemies aptly, Mario only barely, but Link was floored in moments by the covering fire.

"Target, locked on!" a computerized voice spoke as Gordon aimed a slightly newer and more high-tech bazooka at Kirby. "Aiming…"

"I told you, these guys are persistent! We should've mobbed them with Super Bonkers!" Wah Do shouted.

"Well, at least that puffball didn't go superhero mode on us, because he clearly didn't inhale the super ability that was in the star that came out of the defeated Super Bonkers. If he did, this battle would be as good as over." Gordon admitted as he waited for the moment Kirby dodged a Gordo.

Just when he did, Gordon fired a flaming Gordo and it curved towards Kirby, striking him in the face, but Kirby put his hands against it, and managed to stay ground-bound as it pushed him back. Mario made it to one of the snipers, and stomped them out of commission.

"They're making it through, commander! What are our orders!"

"Stand your ground, soldiers! The whip expert and his grunts are on their way, not to mention extra reinforcements from the spear expert's unit! We can win this battle!" Gordon exclaimed.

"HURRAH!" the Waddle Doos cheered, morale being boosted as some of them fell prey to Mario and Sonic's side ambushes and when Kirby had overcome the homing Gordo, the main front was toast. The left and right flanks were finished in moments with a few kicks and punches, and when the harpoons were being fired at the enemy forces, their chances grew slim. Very quickly, troop morale was dropping.

"This isn't looking good…" Wah Do looked worried when she saw Mario running at her. "Hold back, troops! It's time to make a tactical retreat! The enemy is pushing too hard to maintain our hold on this room!"

Mario darted at Wah Do, and nearly stomped her if it wasn't for his leg getting caught on a whip of all things. Yet ANOTHER Waddle Dee commander by the name of Dusty stood before him, and pulled on the whip of which he held. Mario was floored and beamed when Wah Do noticed what had happened.

Kirby thought fast, and inhaled a nearby bunch of rope, then gained the whip power. Dusty was kicked in the back by a sneaky Sonic, and floored, then being the one getting beat down when Kirby lassoed up Wah Do, and did the same with Dusty when the opportunity arose.

Mario got up, hurting a bit from the beaming, and chased down Gordon who was making a hasty retreat with his men. Sonic blocked the fleeing goons quite easily, and Mario blocked any escape out of the castle from his side. They closed them in, and took them out one by one.

"It's all over, men! It's been good fighting with you!" Gordon stated, holding back tears as he was lassoed and bunched with the other commanders.

"SIR!" remaining the troops cried, touched by such a kind statement as they met the same fate, including the unconscious ones.

"Well, I think we're done here." Link said, his hands tired from tying so many knots.

The rest of the journey through the castle was rather mild, with few enemies hinting to the fact that they had dealt with the meat of the enemies in here. Soon enough, they reached a wind elevator in a large vertical room, which was just wind blowing you upwards.

"Cool! It's like I'm sky diving upwards!" Sonic cheered, only for him to get zapped. A large white cloud with an eye in the middle and spikes around the sides of the cloud flew by Sonic, and jolted Mario and Link, too. "Ow… what the heck is that?"

"It's Kracko! He's a more notable enemy I've pummeled several times in the past. He'll be a pain to deal with, that's for sure…" Kirby groaned.

. . .

Luigi punched at the ice wall blocking the boss door. Apparently they had been chilled in, as a thick wall of ice blocked any passage through the door leading into what they believed was the boss' room.

"We need to get through this wall before it thickens or the way we came in gets blocked out." Luigi groaned. Tails made a motion for Luigi to get out of the way, and he did so, Tails pulling out a mini-drill and drilling through the ice, creating a small hole all the way through. He kept doing this in various points, it not doing anything major to the wall, anyway.

"If we can poke enough holes in this ice sheet, we can watch it fall apart, just like paper." Tails explained. Luigi nodded in intrigue.

. . .

"That… was not pleasant." Kirby groaned. "He went haywire near the end, that Kracko. He even fried my whip! Rope ain't easy to come by, you know!"

"At least he's been dealt with now. All that's left is probably the ruler of this castle at the top." Link shrugged as they came flying out through a hole in the shaft, and landed hard on the roof, surrounded by small raises around the square-like shape. It was like a high-up battlefield.

Before them stood the fat hammer-wielding penguin himself.

"Dedede!" Kirby growled. "What the heck are you doing in this world?!"

King Dedede just shrugged.

"One night this hand knocks me out, then next thing I know when I wake up, I'm here. Was that you who did that?"

"Uh… no." Kirby said.

"What about those weirdoes behind you? They look shifty."

"No, they're nice."

"Argh, I was hoping I could get to destroy something today… why can't you at least pretend so I have reason to fight?" King Dedede moaned.

Kamek then flew on to the scene.

"This is NOT going the way I wanted. Time to use force!" Kamek sprinkled Dedede with his magic powder, and cackled. "NOW you'll meet your end at the hands of the king!"

Kamek flew off, no one really caring about what he said as Dedede was the main attraction. Dedede rushed at the group, and when he reached them, they all back-stepped as the king smashed the ground before him with his hammer several times, causing stars to appear.

Kirby inhaled the stars, while the others kicked them at Dedede, Kirby then spitting the stars that weren't kicked at Dedede, all of which seemed to hurt him. King Dedede jumped high in the air, and came crashing down on Mario with his hammer, knocking him out and spawning more stars.

"Yowch." The other three protagonists winced, not thinking to use the stars to attack again. King Dedede ran forward a bit towards the heroes, and started spinning with his hammer extended, sending the bunch flying away from each other from the impact of the whirling hammer of pain.

King Dedede stuttered a bit when his attack finished, and by then Mario was slapped awake by Kirby at the point Dedede fell over, causing stars to appear. Quickly after, Kirby inhaled the stars he could, and spat them at his rival, hurting him further, along with the others' efforts of sending them at Dedede proving worthwhile.

Dedede shook off the pain, got up, and puffed up like a blimp as he flew into the air.

"He can fly?! The heck?" Link and Sonic gasped. Mario looked astounded.

"You were just as surprised to find out I could fly. I've got this." Kirby puffed up, too, and chased Dedede into the air. The king bumped Kirby, sending him into a spin, but he recovered, and bumped his aerodynamic enemy in the gut, causing him to spit out the air he had sucked up, and lose his inflated state, thus falling to the ground and causing stars to appear around him, all of which were knocked into Dedede.

The king crawled away from the characters, and smashed the ground with his hammer normally, causing a shockwave to appear and a few stars where he hit it, which Kirby snagged in his mouth, and spat out as a larger mass, knocking Dedede out.

"Well, that ends his craziness. When he wakes up, maybe he'll be right in the head again." Link hoped as a cannon was noticed in a boring old out of sight part of the battlefield. "Hey, we can take that out of here!"

"Let's." Sonic said as he pushed Mario, Link and Kirby into the cannon, jumped in himself, and realized someone would have to activate the cannon. Just then, a straggler Waddle Dee walked over.

"Good riddance, castle-crashing punks!" he growled, annoyed at how he would likely get blamed for Dedede's castle getting wrecked and his recent defeat, possibly even fired, or having to clean the mess up. "To the canyon you go, you'll like it there you war hounds!"

The four were shot out of the cannon, not sure what to think after that feeble verbal thrashing, but ready to continue on to wherever they landed next…

* * *

**Welp, special chapter written. Could've done a few things here and there, but passed on that. Anyway, I'm quite fond of the way this turned out, so I hope you're also pleased after that long wait.**

**Next time, the canyon, AKA World 6!**


End file.
